Ball State University Athletics

Photo by: Ball State University Creative Services
Volleyball Ends Opening Weekend with 3-1 Win over DePaul
August 26, 2017 | Women's Volleyball
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - - Behind another solid offensive performance, the Ball State women's volleyball team closed play in the Indiana Invitational with a 3-1 (25-18, 25-15, 17-25, 25-23) victory over DePaul Saturday evening at Indiana's University Gym.
"I was really pleased with how we played today," second-year head coach Kelli Miller said. "When we are passing well, we are able to get all of our attackers involved which makes our offense much more effective. That was the key for us today. We stepped up our passing and it showed on offense with a four of our attackers reaching double digit kills over the course of the day. I also thought we served a lot tougher today. Moving forward, we need to continue to serve and pass tougher, but overall it was definitely a good start to the season."
The Cardinals (2-1) finished Saturday's nightcap with a .266 (49-16-124) attack percentage, including hitting .300-or-better in each of the first three sets.
Junior outside hitter Brooklyn Goodsel (Corry, Pa./Corry Area) tied for match-high honors with 15 kills versus the Blue Demons (0-3) to finish opening weekend with 33 total kills and a .272 (33-8-92) attack percentage. She also served up a pair of aces and collected four digs in the weekend finale.
Sophomore setter Amber Seaman (Carmel, Ind./Brebeuf) concluded the match with 36 assists and 11 digs for her second double-double of the day and the 15th of her career. Overall, Seaman guided the Ball State offense to a .289 (99-31-235) attack percentage Saturday, while averaging 10.37 assists and 3.71 digs per set over the two victories.
After collecting 10 kills in the morning session, junior outside hitter Ellie Dunn (Sugar Grove, Ill./Kaneland) finished the nightcap with a season-high 13 kills. She also registered three total blocks against DePaul, including a solo stuff.
Sophomore middle Sydnee VanBeek (St. John, Ill./Illiana Christian) also had a hot hand versus DePaul, serving up three of the team's eight aces. She also connected for five kills and was credited with three block assists. Rounding out Ball State's top attackers on the evening was sophomore opposite Emily Holland (Madison, Ind./Madison) who registered seven kills and a pair of block assists.
In the backcourt, sophomore libero Kate Avila (Yorktown, Ind./Yorktown) led all players with 12 digs, marking the 31st time in her career she has logged double digit digs in a match. Freshman defensive specialist Grace Nelson (Bennington, Neb./Elkhorn) was not far behind, reaching double digits for the first time in her brief collegiate career with a career-high 11 digs.
Brittany Maxwell led the Blue Demons' offense and tied for match-high honors with 15 kills, while Isabelle Banez collected a team-best nine digs. Overall, the Ball State defense did another solid job stopping the DePaul offense, limiting the hosts on the neutral scoreboard to a .143 (44-26-126) attack percentage.
Ball State scored the first two points of the opening set and never looked back, winning the frame 25-18. The Cardinals led by as many as 12 points (18-6) in the set before winning by seven.
After the Cardinals scored the first two points in the second set, DePaul battled back to tie the match for the first time at 2-2. Ball State followed with six straight points, in a run capped by a pair of Holland kills, and controlled the set from there in a 25-15 victory.
DePaul took its first lead of the match with a 3-1 run to open the third set, but the Cardinals battled back to even the score at 3-3. The teams played to a 16-16 stalemate before a 9-1 run gave the Blue Demons a 25-17 third set victory.
The fourth set was another battle, with the teams playing even to the 11-11 mark. However, a kill from Dunn and a DePaul attack error gave Ball State a lead it would not relinquish. Ball State reached match point at 24-20 on another kill from Dunn, who also ended the set (25-23) and the match (3-1) with her 13th and final kill of the contest.
The Ball State women's volleyball team returns to action Friday (Sept. 1), when it opens the home portion of the 2017 season with matches versus Navy (10 a.m.) and Bradley (7:30 p.m.) on the first day of the Ball State Tournament.
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 season or 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 -
"I was really pleased with how we played today," second-year head coach Kelli Miller said. "When we are passing well, we are able to get all of our attackers involved which makes our offense much more effective. That was the key for us today. We stepped up our passing and it showed on offense with a four of our attackers reaching double digit kills over the course of the day. I also thought we served a lot tougher today. Moving forward, we need to continue to serve and pass tougher, but overall it was definitely a good start to the season."
The Cardinals (2-1) finished Saturday's nightcap with a .266 (49-16-124) attack percentage, including hitting .300-or-better in each of the first three sets.
Junior outside hitter Brooklyn Goodsel (Corry, Pa./Corry Area) tied for match-high honors with 15 kills versus the Blue Demons (0-3) to finish opening weekend with 33 total kills and a .272 (33-8-92) attack percentage. She also served up a pair of aces and collected four digs in the weekend finale.
Sophomore setter Amber Seaman (Carmel, Ind./Brebeuf) concluded the match with 36 assists and 11 digs for her second double-double of the day and the 15th of her career. Overall, Seaman guided the Ball State offense to a .289 (99-31-235) attack percentage Saturday, while averaging 10.37 assists and 3.71 digs per set over the two victories.
After collecting 10 kills in the morning session, junior outside hitter Ellie Dunn (Sugar Grove, Ill./Kaneland) finished the nightcap with a season-high 13 kills. She also registered three total blocks against DePaul, including a solo stuff.
Sophomore middle Sydnee VanBeek (St. John, Ill./Illiana Christian) also had a hot hand versus DePaul, serving up three of the team's eight aces. She also connected for five kills and was credited with three block assists. Rounding out Ball State's top attackers on the evening was sophomore opposite Emily Holland (Madison, Ind./Madison) who registered seven kills and a pair of block assists.
In the backcourt, sophomore libero Kate Avila (Yorktown, Ind./Yorktown) led all players with 12 digs, marking the 31st time in her career she has logged double digit digs in a match. Freshman defensive specialist Grace Nelson (Bennington, Neb./Elkhorn) was not far behind, reaching double digits for the first time in her brief collegiate career with a career-high 11 digs.
Brittany Maxwell led the Blue Demons' offense and tied for match-high honors with 15 kills, while Isabelle Banez collected a team-best nine digs. Overall, the Ball State defense did another solid job stopping the DePaul offense, limiting the hosts on the neutral scoreboard to a .143 (44-26-126) attack percentage.
Ball State scored the first two points of the opening set and never looked back, winning the frame 25-18. The Cardinals led by as many as 12 points (18-6) in the set before winning by seven.
After the Cardinals scored the first two points in the second set, DePaul battled back to tie the match for the first time at 2-2. Ball State followed with six straight points, in a run capped by a pair of Holland kills, and controlled the set from there in a 25-15 victory.
DePaul took its first lead of the match with a 3-1 run to open the third set, but the Cardinals battled back to even the score at 3-3. The teams played to a 16-16 stalemate before a 9-1 run gave the Blue Demons a 25-17 third set victory.
The fourth set was another battle, with the teams playing even to the 11-11 mark. However, a kill from Dunn and a DePaul attack error gave Ball State a lead it would not relinquish. Ball State reached match point at 24-20 on another kill from Dunn, who also ended the set (25-23) and the match (3-1) with her 13th and final kill of the contest.
The Ball State women's volleyball team returns to action Friday (Sept. 1), when it opens the home portion of the 2017 season with matches versus Navy (10 a.m.) and Bradley (7:30 p.m.) on the first day of the Ball State Tournament.
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 season or 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 -
Team Stats
BSU
DPU
Kills
49
44
Errors
16
26
Attempts
124
126
Hitting %
.266
.143
Points
62.0
57.0
Assists
42
43
Aces
8
9
Blocks
5.0
4.0
Game Leaders
Players Mentioned
Sports Link: National Girls and Women in Sports Day
Wednesday, February 25
Celebrating National Girls and Women in Sports Day // Produced by Ball State Sports Link
Wednesday, February 04
Ball State Sports Link: SL Featured (November 2025)
Tuesday, November 25
Women's Volleyball // MAC Tournament Preview
Thursday, November 20













