Ball State University
3-0
New Mexico
2-1
Volleyball Rallies Past New Mexico To Claim Active Ankle Title
August 30, 2015 | Women's Volleyball
MUNCIE, Ind. - - For the third time this season, Ball State women's volleyball senior outside hitter Alex Fuelling (Decatur, Ind./Bellmont/Morehead State) sent the Worthen Arena crowd into a victorious frenzy as her roll shot over the block found the floor and capped a 3-2 (18-25, 16-25, 25-20, 29-27, 15-13) come-from-behind victory over New Mexico Saturday night in the championship match of the 2015 Active Ankle Challenge.
Named the tournament's Most Valuable Player, Fuelling smashed 17 kills and collected 15 digs in Saturday's victory over the Lobos (2-1) for her third double-double of the tournament. She also provided three of the biggest kills over the two-day event, depositing the match-winning point in all three Cardinals' (3-0) victories.
“This senior class needed a marquee win,” Ball State head coach Steve Shondell said. “We talk all the time about being a big-named school, a top 50 program. When you get the opportunity to go toe-to-toe with one of those programs like New Mexico, you have to take advantage of it. This was one of the biggest wins we have had in the last couple years, and gives us something to build on heading into Wednesday's match at IUPUI and three tough contests next weekend.”
Not to be lost in this weekend's matches was the role the Worthen Arena faithful played in helping the Cardinals pull out two impressive fifth-set victories according to both Shondell and his student-athletes.
“The last two nights, the crowd has really carried us late in the matches,” Shondell said. “It's like having a seventh player on the court, and having the band there automatically gives you a two-to-three point advantage. It's so fun to play when the crowd is totally into the match. I give our fans a lot of credit for the support they have shown our team this weekend.”
Joining Fuelling on the all-tournament team for the Cardinals were senior setter Jenna Spadafora (Fort Wayne, Ind./Carroll) and senior middle blocker Kelly Hopkins (Kokomo, Ind./Kokomo). Spadafora set the Ball State offense to a .241 (65-23-174) rate of success in the championship match versus New Mexico, while earning her second consecutive assist (48) / dig (12) double-double of the season. Hopkins finished the night with a career-high 21 kills, while hitting .405 (21-6-37) and adding seven total blocks.
Rounding out the 2015 Ball State Active Ankle Challenge All-Tournament Team were Simone Henderson (New Mexico), Hannah Johnson (New Mexico), Laini Leindecker (Albany) and Emma Price (Belmont).
A huge key to the Cardinals' turn-around came at the net, as the Ball State defense tallied 12 of its 16.5 total blocks over the final three sets. Sophomore Jessica Lindsey (Frankfort, Ill./Lincoln-Way East) was a key figure in the blocking effort, as she produced a career-best and match-high nine total blocks (one solo and eight assists). Freshman Emily Holland (Madison, Ind./Madison) also had a career night at the net with seven block assists, while added a career-high 11 kills.
In the backcourt, senior libero Kati Vasalakis (Yorktown, Ind./Yorktown) continued her strong play by leading all defenders with 24 digs.
Henderson paced the Lobos attack with 21 kills, while Julia Warren added a team-high 19 digs. Despite the Cardinals holding a 16.5 to 9.0 advantage in total blocks, New Mexico was able to out-hit Ball State by a slim .247 (67-26-166) to .241 margin. The Lobos also had a 71 to 66 edge in digs on the night.
The Ball State women's volleyball team returns to action Wednesday, when it travels down I-69 to battle in-state rival IUPUI at 7 p.m. From there, the Cardinals travel further south, to Nashville, Tenn., for the Lipscomb Invitational where it will play the host Lady Bisons (12:30 p.m. CT) and Florida Atlantic (5 p.m. CT) Friday, before closing the two-day event versus Pepperdine Saturday (12:30 p.m. CT).
For the most up-to-date news on Ball State women's volleyball, follow @BallStateSports, @BallStateWVB and @SteveShondell on Twitter.
- BallStateSports.com -
