Volleyball Claws Its Way Past Bowling Green in Four Sets

MUNCIE, Ind. - - While it was not the start the Ball State women's volleyball team envisioned, the Cardinals (14-8; 6-3 Mid-American Conference) stayed strong and rallied for a 3-1 (12-25, 26-24, 25-15, 25-20) victory over league-leader Bowling Green Friday night at Worthen Arena.

In improving to 8-1 at home this season, Ball State snapped the Falcons' (11-9; 7-2 MAC) seven-match winning streak and drastically tightened the race for the 2017 MAC regular season championship.

"Tonight was big for us," second-year head coach Kelli Miller said. "Bowling Green is a tough, talented team and makes you battle for every point. We did a good job maintaining our composure and staying the course no matter what they threw at us. We were able to play our style of volleyball, and ultimately came out on top in a pivotal league match."

Things were not looking so hot for the Cardinals early in the match. After dropping the opening set 25-12, Ball State was up 18-12 in the second only to see Bowling Green go on a 9-1 run to pull ahead 21-19. BGSU went on to reach set point at 24-23, but junior outside Ellie Dunn (Sugar Grove, Ill./Kaneland) answered with her biggest of 12 kills on the night to give the Cardinals life.

Junior right side Brooklyn Goodsel (Corry, Pa./Corry Area) followed with a solo block, her only block of the contest, while a BGSU attack error ended the frame and gave Ball State the momentum in the match. The Cardinals took control from there, winning the third set 25-15 and the fourth 25-20 to take the match in four sets.

"We tired a couple of different things lineup wise tonight and it took us a set to get into an offensive rhythm," Miller added. "We really settled in as the match went on and just competed which made a really big difference."

One of the biggest changes on the offensive front was the addition of freshman outside Kia Holder (Valparaiso, Ind./Morgan Township) to the starting rotation. It proved to be an excellent addition, as Holder smashed a career-high 17 kills to lead all players in the match. While she finished the night hitting .200 (17-9-40), Holder mimicked the Ball State offense, hitting .375 (5-2-8) in the third and .714 (5-0-7) in the fourth.

"Kia just hits the ball hard," Miller said. "She is going to get her rips every time she goes out. I thought she made good shots, and while she had a couple of errors in a row which is part of her journey, she rebounded and gave us a much-needed offensive boost tonight."

Another key to the Ball State victory was the defensive dominance of sophomore libero Kate Avila (Yorktown, Ind./Yorktown). Going toe-to-toe with Bowling Green libero Kallie Seimet, who entered the match leading the nation with a 6.77 digs-per-set average, Avila secured a season-high 29 digs to nearly double up Seimet who finished the night with 17.

Goodsel finished the match with her sixth double-double of the season, scoring 12 kills and 11 digs to go along with her pivotal solo block near the end of the second set. Also securing double figure digs for the Cardinals was junior defensive specialist Lauren Schreiner (East Amherst, N.Y./Williamsville North) with 10.

Despite out-digging the Falcons 69 to 63, the Cardinals trailed in overall attack percentage at home for the first time this season, with Ball State hitting .188 (57-27-160) to Bowling Green's .208 (47-17-144) rate of success.

The Cardinals were able to keep another streak alive, however, as Ball State improve to 9-0 in matches it leads in aces. Both sophomore setter Amber Seaman (Carmel, Ind./Brebeuf) and sophomore middle Sydnee VanBeek (St. John, Ind./Illiana Christian) served up three aces for the Cardinals, helping give the hosts a 6 to 4 edge in the category for the night.

Seaman also dished out 51 assists, tallied three digs, scored two kills and secured a pair of block assists. VanBeek added nine kills, two digs and a block assist to her stat line.

Nicole Slimko led the BGSU offense with 12 kills, while Falcons setter Isabelle Marciniak logged a team-high 18 digs and dished out 36 assists for her ninth double-double of the season.

The Ball State women's volleyball team will look to take down another league-leader Saturday night, when it faces defending MAC regular season champion Miami in another 7 p.m. first serve at Worthen Arena. With a 3-0 sweep at Toledo Friday night, the RedHawks took over the top overall spot in the league standings with a 7-2 MAC record and a win over the 7-2 Falcons earlier in the year.

Cardinals fans looking to extend their homecoming festivities will receive free admission to Saturday's match versus Miami by showing their Ball State vs. Central Michigan football game ticket stub at the Worthen Arena ticket office. The match will also close out Ball State volleyball's alumni weekend, with the program's alumni being recognized on court during the match.

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 individual match tickets now by calling (888-BSU-TICKET), visiting the Ball State's Stoops Buick/GMC Ticket Center inside Worthen Arena or ordering online at: https://oss.ticketmaster.com/aps/bsuathletics/EN/link/buy/details/17WVB

- BallStateSports.com -

Volleyball Claws Its Way Past Bowling Green in Four Sets

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Team Stats

Kia Holder

Brooklyn Goodsel

Ellie Dunn

Sydnee VanBeek

Players Mentioned

Kate Avila

Ellie Dunn

Brooklyn Goodsel

Kia Holder

Lauren Schreiner

Amber Seaman

Sydnee VanBeek

Players Mentioned

Kate Avila

Ellie Dunn

Brooklyn Goodsel

Kia Holder

Lauren Schreiner

Amber Seaman

Sydnee VanBeek