Ball State University Athletics
Ball State University
12-13 (6-5MAC)
Toledo
4-20 (1-10MAC)
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toledo | 24 | 13 | 14 | 0 |
| Ball State | 26 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
Raker?s Career Night Leads Women?s Volleyball Past Toledo
October 30, 2015 | Women's Volleyball
MUNCIE, Ind. - - In a series dominated of late by marathon matches, the Ball State women's volleyball team was able to rally late in the opening set, and then dominate the final two games of a 3-0 (26-24, 25-13, 25-14) sweep of Mid-American Conference West Division rival Toledo Thursday night in Worthen Arena.
Earlier this season, the Cardinals (12-13 / 6-5 MAC) had to rally from two sets down to escape the Rockets' (4-20 / 1-10 MAC) Savage Arena with a 3-2 (13-25, 18-25, 26-24, 25-11, 15-10) victory in its league opener Sept. 24. Tonight, the Cardinals were able to avoid what could have been a 14th five-set match between the two clubs in the last 29 meetings thanks in part to a career night from senior middle Amanda Raker (Indianapolis, Ind./Perry Meridian/Butler).
“We were very fortunate to win game one at the end,” sixth-year Ball State head coach Steve Shondell said. “I really thought that was the pivotal moment of the match. That was really key, because it put more pressure on them in game two, and they started making more errors when they played from behind. We just relaxed and continued to play better-and-better. Overall, it was a really good match for us tonight.”
Raker, who started her collegiate career as a women's basketball player at Butler (2011-12 & 2012-13), turned in the most impressive performance of her three-year volleyball career at Ball State by smashing nine kills on nine attempts for a perfect 1.000 attack percentage. The effort is the Cardinals' best for a player recording at least nine kills in a match in the Shondell era. The previous mark came from current senior outside attacker Alex Fuelling (Decatur, Ind./Bellmont /Morehead State), who hit .733 (11-0-15) versus The Citadel (Aug. 31, 2013) in her first year on the squad.
“It was really good to see her [Amanda] get nine consecutive kills, because that is not easy for anyone to do,” Shondell said about Raker's performance. “She has really been playing well for us the last couple weeks. She is a senior, and taking advantage of her opportunities as we head down the stretch of the season.”
Toledo opened the match strong, pulling out to an 8-3 lead. Ball State followed with a big run of its own, eventually taking a one-point edge, at 12-11, thanks to a Fuelling ace. The Rockets bounced back, however, scoring the next two points and playing to a 23-21 advantage. Kills from Raker and Fuelling helped the Cardinals even the score at 23, while a UT attack error gave Ball State its first set point at 24-23.
However, an untimely service error almost cost the Cardinals and allowed Toledo to even the set one last time at 24-24. Luckily for the home squad, the Rockets returned the favor with a service error of their own. It looked like Toledo was able to even the score once again on the next rally, but the Rockets' attacker was called in the net allowing the hosts to escape with a 26-24 opening set win.
It was all Ball State from that point on, as the Cardinals never trailed the remainder of the night. Ball State scored the first three points in a 25-13 second set victory, and the first four points in a 25-14 third set win.
In addition to Raker's nine kills, Ball State redshirt junior outside attacker Mackenzie Kitchel (Greenwood, Ind./Center Grove/Cincinnati) turned in her third consecutive strong performance, tying for match-high honors with nine kills while hitting .500 (9-1-16). Fuelling rounded out the Cardinals' top attackers with seven kills and added three aces to finish the night with a match-high 10 total points.
Overall, the Ball State offense connected for a .357 (42-12-84) rate of success as senior setter Jenna Spadafora (Fort Wayne, Ind./Carroll) kept the Rockets defense off balance the entire night by dishing out 33 assists and recording four kills of her own. Senior libero Kati Vasalakis (Yorktown, Ind./Yorktown) led all defenders with nine digs.
Toledo finished the match hitting .136 (30-18-88), including a -.080 (5-7-25) mark in the second set. Saige Thomas led the Rockets' attack with eight kills, while Maurissa Leonard collected a team-high seven digs. Overall, Ball State held a 35-to-28 edge in team digs, an 8-to-1 advantage in service aces and a 5.0-to-2.0 lead in team blocks.
The Ball State women's volleyball team closes its current four-match home stand Saturday, when it hosts Buffalo in another 7 p.m. first serve at Worthen Arena.
For the most up-to-date news on Ball State women's volleyball, follow @BallStateSports, @BallStateWVB and @SteveShondell on Twitter.
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