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Photo by: Haley Boehm
WVB's Streak Ends With Five-Set Loss at Toledo
February 04, 2021 | Women's Volleyball
TOLEDO, Ohio - - Facing its toughest test of the young season, the Ball State women's volleyball team rallied from down 2-1 to reach match point five times in the fifth set.
Unfortunately, it was not meant to be, as Toledo squeaked out a hard-fought 3-2 (25-17. 17-25, 25-21, 20-25, 21-19) Mid-American Conference victory at Savage Arena. The loss moves the Cardinals to 4-1 (4-1 MAC) on the year, while the Rockets improve to 2-3 (2-3 MAC).
"Toledo is a well-coached team that can find any weaknesses you have and expose them," acting head coach Fritz Rosenberg said. "While we played a tough, gritty match, Toledo really showed us where we need to improve. They play a scrappy defense which keeps them in every match."
Tough battles have been a staple of the all-time series with Toledo, including last season's meeting which saw Ball State earn a 23-21 fifth-set victory on its home court on Halloween. In fact, 23 of the last 39 meetings have lasted at least four sets, with 16 ending in five.
Despite the setback, the Cardinals were still able to effectively spread the ball with three different attackers finishing the night with double-digit kills. The most impressive performance came from sophomore opposite Allison Hamaker (Lombard, Ill./Glenbard East) who smashed a season-high 17 kills.
Five of those kills came in the second-frame victory, including four in a five-point span to give Ball State a 17-11 edge.
"I thought Allison played a great match tonight," Rosenberg said. "She was in a great rhythm with Kate Vinson and really did a good job keeping the Toledo defense off balance."
Senior outside hitter Kia Holder (Valparaiso, Ind./Valparaiso) was second on the squad with 12 kills, while sophomore outside hitter Natalie Risi (Clarkston, Mich./Notre Dame Preparatory) reached double figures for the first time this season with 10.
In a battle of the top two blocking teams in the MAC, the Cardinals came out on top with a 12.0-to-10.0 advantage. Sophomore opposite Natalie Mitchem (Bolingbrook, Ill./Bolingbrook) led the way with a career-high seven blocks, while freshman middle Lauren Gilliland (Coldwater, Ohio/Coldwater) was right behind with six.
Sophomore libero Maggie Huber (Loveland, Ohio/Ursuline Academy) led a trio of Cardinals in double figures in the backcourt, with a career-high 35 digs. Huber also paced Ball State's servers with a pair of aces.
"I don't think anyone had a doubt that Maggie could play libero," Rosenberg said. "She is a strong defender and covers a lot of ground for us back there. She's a great competitor who works hard to make everyone on the team better, and does whatever it takes to make plays."
Risi added 15 digs to her 10 kills for her first double-double of the season, while freshman setter Kate Vinson (Yorktown, Ind./Yorktown) collected 10 digs to go along with 27 assists for her second double-double of the year.
Ball State will look to avenge tonight's lost at Toledo tomorrow afternoon, when the teams meet up for a 4:30 p.m. first serve at Savage Arena.
Unfortunately, it was not meant to be, as Toledo squeaked out a hard-fought 3-2 (25-17. 17-25, 25-21, 20-25, 21-19) Mid-American Conference victory at Savage Arena. The loss moves the Cardinals to 4-1 (4-1 MAC) on the year, while the Rockets improve to 2-3 (2-3 MAC).
"Toledo is a well-coached team that can find any weaknesses you have and expose them," acting head coach Fritz Rosenberg said. "While we played a tough, gritty match, Toledo really showed us where we need to improve. They play a scrappy defense which keeps them in every match."
Tough battles have been a staple of the all-time series with Toledo, including last season's meeting which saw Ball State earn a 23-21 fifth-set victory on its home court on Halloween. In fact, 23 of the last 39 meetings have lasted at least four sets, with 16 ending in five.
Despite the setback, the Cardinals were still able to effectively spread the ball with three different attackers finishing the night with double-digit kills. The most impressive performance came from sophomore opposite Allison Hamaker (Lombard, Ill./Glenbard East) who smashed a season-high 17 kills.
Five of those kills came in the second-frame victory, including four in a five-point span to give Ball State a 17-11 edge.
"I thought Allison played a great match tonight," Rosenberg said. "She was in a great rhythm with Kate Vinson and really did a good job keeping the Toledo defense off balance."
Senior outside hitter Kia Holder (Valparaiso, Ind./Valparaiso) was second on the squad with 12 kills, while sophomore outside hitter Natalie Risi (Clarkston, Mich./Notre Dame Preparatory) reached double figures for the first time this season with 10.
In a battle of the top two blocking teams in the MAC, the Cardinals came out on top with a 12.0-to-10.0 advantage. Sophomore opposite Natalie Mitchem (Bolingbrook, Ill./Bolingbrook) led the way with a career-high seven blocks, while freshman middle Lauren Gilliland (Coldwater, Ohio/Coldwater) was right behind with six.
Sophomore libero Maggie Huber (Loveland, Ohio/Ursuline Academy) led a trio of Cardinals in double figures in the backcourt, with a career-high 35 digs. Huber also paced Ball State's servers with a pair of aces.
"I don't think anyone had a doubt that Maggie could play libero," Rosenberg said. "She is a strong defender and covers a lot of ground for us back there. She's a great competitor who works hard to make everyone on the team better, and does whatever it takes to make plays."
Risi added 15 digs to her 10 kills for her first double-double of the season, while freshman setter Kate Vinson (Yorktown, Ind./Yorktown) collected 10 digs to go along with 27 assists for her second double-double of the year.
Ball State will look to avenge tonight's lost at Toledo tomorrow afternoon, when the teams meet up for a 4:30 p.m. first serve at Savage Arena.
Team Stats
BSU
UT
Kills
58
69
Errors
27
35
Attempts
203
208
Hitting %
.153
.163
Points
75
82
Assists
54
64
Aces
5
3
Blocks
12
10
Game Leaders
Kills
17
Aces
0
Blocks
0
Kills
12
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Kills
10
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
9
Aces
0
Blocks
7
Players Mentioned
MB
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