Saturday, September 17
Muncie, Ind.
6:00 PM
Ball State University
4-10
0
vs
3
Ohio State
10-2
1
2
3
F
Ohio State
25
25
25
3
Ball State
21
17
14
0
Volleyball Ends Pre-conference Play with Loss to No. 19 Ohio State
September 17, 2016 | Women's Volleyball
MUNCIE, Ind. - - The Ball State women's volleyball team came out of the gate strong Saturday night in Worthen Arena, but ultimately suffered a 3-0 (25-21, 25-17, 25-14) setback to 19th-ranked Ohio State in the final match of the Active Ankle Challenge.
The Cardinals (4-10) entered the match with four straight wins and had the nationally-ranked Buckeyes (10-2) on their heels early in the opening set, pulling ahead 16-12. Unfortunately, the Buckeyes (10-2) battled back to tie the frame at 16 and went on to win the set and sweep the match.
"I thought we came out with a lot of fight tonight," first-year head coach Kelli Miller said. "Our goal was to make sure we maintained what we've been doing to be successful, and not try to do too much. I thought we had good composure in set one and battled right with them. We played great defense for a majority of the match, hustled and made a lot of plays to extended rallies."
Sophomore outside hitter Brooklyn Goodsel (Corry, Pa./Corry Area) continued her strong play in Saturday's match, leading the Ball State offense with 10 kills to solidify her spot on the Active Ankle Challenge All-Tournament Team. Over the course of the tournament, Goodsel led the Cardinals offense with a .308 (43-11-104) attack percentage and averaged 3.58 kills and 1.92 digs per set.
Freshman libero Kate Avila (Yorktown, Ind./Yorktown) also earned all-tournament accolades after finishing Saturday's match with a team-best 10 digs. Avila averaged 5.17 digs per set in the Active Ankle Challenge, while also logging a .966 (56-for-58) reception percentage.
Freshman defensive specialist Hannah Smith (Selma, Ind./Wapahani) was not far behind, earning eight digs versus the Buckeyes and averaging 2.83 digs per set over the tournament. Smith earned perfect passing marks in all three matches over the weekend, leading the Cardinals' primary passers with an unblemished reception percentage in 42 attempts.
Freshman setter Amber Seaman (Carmel, Ind./Brebeuf) also turned in a strong performance versus Ohio State, dishing out 28 assists to go along with five kills, a .500 (5-1-8) attack percentage and five digs. She also served up the Cardinals only ace Saturday.
Rounding out Ball State's top contributors on offense against Ohio State was redshirt junior outside hitter Sabrina Mangapora (Canfield, Ohio/Canfield) with seven kills. Mangapora led Ball State with 46 kills in the Active Ankle Challenge and hit .228 (46-17-127) for the event.
"Our consistency has been a huge improvement," Miller said. "We've learned a lot and really matured throughout pre-conference. We are learning how to stay in our roles, lineups are starting to develop and we are getting more comfortable playing with one another. We are learning how to fight together. How to compete on every point and getting mentally tougher in the process."
The Ball State women's volleyball team turns its attention to Mid-American Conference play next weekend, as the Cardinals host West Division rivals Central Michigan (Friday) and Eastern Michigan (Saturday) to open league play. Both matches will start at 7 p.m. and be carried live on ESPN3 and the WatchESPN app.
For the most up-to-date news on Ball State women's volleyball, follow @BallStateSports, @BallStateWVB and @VBCoachMiller on Twitter.
Ball State volleyball fans can purchase single match (Adult - $6 / Youth - $4) or season tickets (Adult - $39 / Youth - $25) by calling (888-BSU-TICKET) or visiting the Ball State's Stoops Buick/GMC Ticket Center inside Worthen Arena.
- BallStateSports.com -
The Cardinals (4-10) entered the match with four straight wins and had the nationally-ranked Buckeyes (10-2) on their heels early in the opening set, pulling ahead 16-12. Unfortunately, the Buckeyes (10-2) battled back to tie the frame at 16 and went on to win the set and sweep the match.
"I thought we came out with a lot of fight tonight," first-year head coach Kelli Miller said. "Our goal was to make sure we maintained what we've been doing to be successful, and not try to do too much. I thought we had good composure in set one and battled right with them. We played great defense for a majority of the match, hustled and made a lot of plays to extended rallies."
Sophomore outside hitter Brooklyn Goodsel (Corry, Pa./Corry Area) continued her strong play in Saturday's match, leading the Ball State offense with 10 kills to solidify her spot on the Active Ankle Challenge All-Tournament Team. Over the course of the tournament, Goodsel led the Cardinals offense with a .308 (43-11-104) attack percentage and averaged 3.58 kills and 1.92 digs per set.
Freshman libero Kate Avila (Yorktown, Ind./Yorktown) also earned all-tournament accolades after finishing Saturday's match with a team-best 10 digs. Avila averaged 5.17 digs per set in the Active Ankle Challenge, while also logging a .966 (56-for-58) reception percentage.
Freshman defensive specialist Hannah Smith (Selma, Ind./Wapahani) was not far behind, earning eight digs versus the Buckeyes and averaging 2.83 digs per set over the tournament. Smith earned perfect passing marks in all three matches over the weekend, leading the Cardinals' primary passers with an unblemished reception percentage in 42 attempts.
Freshman setter Amber Seaman (Carmel, Ind./Brebeuf) also turned in a strong performance versus Ohio State, dishing out 28 assists to go along with five kills, a .500 (5-1-8) attack percentage and five digs. She also served up the Cardinals only ace Saturday.
Rounding out Ball State's top contributors on offense against Ohio State was redshirt junior outside hitter Sabrina Mangapora (Canfield, Ohio/Canfield) with seven kills. Mangapora led Ball State with 46 kills in the Active Ankle Challenge and hit .228 (46-17-127) for the event.
"Our consistency has been a huge improvement," Miller said. "We've learned a lot and really matured throughout pre-conference. We are learning how to stay in our roles, lineups are starting to develop and we are getting more comfortable playing with one another. We are learning how to fight together. How to compete on every point and getting mentally tougher in the process."
The Ball State women's volleyball team turns its attention to Mid-American Conference play next weekend, as the Cardinals host West Division rivals Central Michigan (Friday) and Eastern Michigan (Saturday) to open league play. Both matches will start at 7 p.m. and be carried live on ESPN3 and the WatchESPN app.
For the most up-to-date news on Ball State women's volleyball, follow @BallStateSports, @BallStateWVB and @VBCoachMiller on Twitter.
Ball State volleyball fans can purchase single match (Adult - $6 / Youth - $4) or season tickets (Adult - $39 / Youth - $25) by calling (888-BSU-TICKET) or visiting the Ball State's Stoops Buick/GMC Ticket Center inside Worthen Arena.
- BallStateSports.com -
Team Stats
OSU
BSU
Kills
45
33
Errors
11
21
Attempts
94
95
Hitting %
.362
.126
Points
59.0
37.0
Assists
43
33
Aces
6
1
Blocks
8.0
3.0
Game Leaders
Kills
10
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
7
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
5
Aces
1
Blocks
0
Kills
3
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Players Mentioned
DS
/ Women's VolleyballOH/OPP
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's VolleyballS
/ Women's Volleyball
DS
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