Friday, October 4
Muncie, IND
7:00 PM
Ball State University
8-7
3
vs
0
Northern Illinois
4-13
1
2
3
F
Northern Ill.
19
19
24
0
Ball St.
25
25
26
3
Photo by: Ball State University Creative Services
Risi’s Big Night Leads Volleyball to Sweep of NIU
October 04, 2019 | Women's Volleyball
MUNCIE, Ind. - - Fueled by a huge night from freshman outside Natalie Risi, the Ball State women's volleyball team opened the home portion of its Mid-American Conference slate with a 3-0 (25-19, 25-19, 26-24) sweep of Northern Illinois Friday night in Worthen Arena.
"We were able to get things going early on offense, which gave us a lot of confidence," head coach Kelli Miller Phillips said. "Our service pressure towards the end of set one, and the remainder of the match, really picked up and allowed us to be a lot more effective from a blocking presence."
On a night in which the Cardinals (8-7; 2-1 MAC) hit a season-best .387 (50-9-106), it was the play of Risi which stood out the most. The freshman from Clarkston, Michigan, tied her career-high with 17 kills and hit a career-best .400 (17-3-35). She also had a strong night on defense, collecting with six digs and a .941 reception percentage.
"Natalie Risi had a different go to her tonight," Phillips said. "I thought Amber set her really well, so that got her in rhythm early. She's such a cerebral player; she scores off-speed, with power and by moving the ball around along the net. I just thought she seemed very focused and Amber got her the ball in perfect scenarios."
Following Risi on the Ball State offense were freshman opposite Allison Hamaker with nine kills and a .412 (9-2-17) attack percentage and senior middle Sydnee VanBeek with eight kills and a season-high .533 (8-0-15) rate of success.
Senior setter Amber Seaman ran a nearly perfect offense, handing out 43 assists and scoring three kills herself. She also served up three of BSU's five service aces, including back-to-back aces late in the opening set to give Ball State the early momentum.
While the Huskies (4-13; 1-2 MAC) were able to finish the night with a .245 (42-15-110) team attack percentage, aided by a strong push in the third set, Ball State's defense held a 49-to-38 edge in team digs. Freshmen defensive specialists Maggie Huber and Chloe Rickenbach tied for match-high honors with 14 digs apiece, while senior libero Kate Avila added 12 digs. Avila also finished the match with a perfect reception percentage in 12 attempts.
The Cardinals looked poised to run away with the match after winning the opening set and leading 22-11 in the second. But the Huskies were able to battle back and end the second on an 8-3 run. That gave the guests from DeKalb, Ilinois, some energy in the third. However, Ball State was able to hold strong and win the final frame in extra points.
"While I was happy with our service pressure and our offensive game, the one thing we have to work on is finishing matches," Phillips said. "We've been up 2-0 and teams have been making adjustments. We have to be able to match that intensity, which is what we talked about a lot at the end of the match. It's not going to happen by continuing to do the same thing. We have to be prepared for our opponents to do something different and act accordingly."
The Cardinals will be in for a tough test Saturday night, when Western Michigan visits Worthen Arena for a 7 p.m. first serve in a match which will be broadcast on ESPN3. The Broncos enter the contest with an 11-4 (2-1 MAC) record after sweeping Toledo Friday night.
"Tomorrow's match is going to be an absolute battle," Phillis said. "Western has a ton of arms, so we are going to have to be prepared with a good defensive plan on how we are going to defend all their hitters. They have six hitters who are consistently brining the heat, so we're going to have to really focus in on defensive and on our service pressure."
For the most up-to-date news on Ball State women's volleyball, follow @BallStateSports, @BallStateWVB and @VBCoachMiller on Twitter.
- BallStateSports.com -
"We were able to get things going early on offense, which gave us a lot of confidence," head coach Kelli Miller Phillips said. "Our service pressure towards the end of set one, and the remainder of the match, really picked up and allowed us to be a lot more effective from a blocking presence."
On a night in which the Cardinals (8-7; 2-1 MAC) hit a season-best .387 (50-9-106), it was the play of Risi which stood out the most. The freshman from Clarkston, Michigan, tied her career-high with 17 kills and hit a career-best .400 (17-3-35). She also had a strong night on defense, collecting with six digs and a .941 reception percentage.
"Natalie Risi had a different go to her tonight," Phillips said. "I thought Amber set her really well, so that got her in rhythm early. She's such a cerebral player; she scores off-speed, with power and by moving the ball around along the net. I just thought she seemed very focused and Amber got her the ball in perfect scenarios."
Following Risi on the Ball State offense were freshman opposite Allison Hamaker with nine kills and a .412 (9-2-17) attack percentage and senior middle Sydnee VanBeek with eight kills and a season-high .533 (8-0-15) rate of success.
Senior setter Amber Seaman ran a nearly perfect offense, handing out 43 assists and scoring three kills herself. She also served up three of BSU's five service aces, including back-to-back aces late in the opening set to give Ball State the early momentum.
While the Huskies (4-13; 1-2 MAC) were able to finish the night with a .245 (42-15-110) team attack percentage, aided by a strong push in the third set, Ball State's defense held a 49-to-38 edge in team digs. Freshmen defensive specialists Maggie Huber and Chloe Rickenbach tied for match-high honors with 14 digs apiece, while senior libero Kate Avila added 12 digs. Avila also finished the match with a perfect reception percentage in 12 attempts.
The Cardinals looked poised to run away with the match after winning the opening set and leading 22-11 in the second. But the Huskies were able to battle back and end the second on an 8-3 run. That gave the guests from DeKalb, Ilinois, some energy in the third. However, Ball State was able to hold strong and win the final frame in extra points.
"While I was happy with our service pressure and our offensive game, the one thing we have to work on is finishing matches," Phillips said. "We've been up 2-0 and teams have been making adjustments. We have to be able to match that intensity, which is what we talked about a lot at the end of the match. It's not going to happen by continuing to do the same thing. We have to be prepared for our opponents to do something different and act accordingly."
The Cardinals will be in for a tough test Saturday night, when Western Michigan visits Worthen Arena for a 7 p.m. first serve in a match which will be broadcast on ESPN3. The Broncos enter the contest with an 11-4 (2-1 MAC) record after sweeping Toledo Friday night.
"Tomorrow's match is going to be an absolute battle," Phillis said. "Western has a ton of arms, so we are going to have to be prepared with a good defensive plan on how we are going to defend all their hitters. They have six hitters who are consistently brining the heat, so we're going to have to really focus in on defensive and on our service pressure."
For the most up-to-date news on Ball State women's volleyball, follow @BallStateSports, @BallStateWVB and @VBCoachMiller on Twitter.
- BallStateSports.com -
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Team Stats
NIU
BSU
Kills
42
50
Errors
15
9
Attempts
110
106
Hitting %
.245
.387
Points
49
59
Assists
40
48
Aces
2
5
Blocks
5
4
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
17
Aces
1
Blocks
0
Kills
9
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
8
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
6
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Players Mentioned
DS
/ Women's VolleyballOPP
/ Women's Volleyball
DS
/ Women's Volleyball
DS
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's VolleyballMB
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