Friday, March 26
Ypsilanti, MI
6 p.m.
Ball State University
9-11,9-11MAC
3
at
0
Eastern Michigan
7-12,7-12MAC
1
2
3
F
Ball St.
25
25
25
3
Eastern Mich.
18
18
16
0
Photo by: Bobby Ellis (Ball State Creative Services)
Holder, Mitchem Blast WVB to 3-0 Sweep of Eastern Michigan
March 26, 2021 | Women's Volleyball
YPSILANTI, Mich. -- The Ball State women's volleyball team breezed to a 3-0 (25-18, 25-18, 25-16) sweep of Eastern Michigan on the road Friday evening in the first of a back-to-back against the Eagles to close the season.
Kia Holder (17) and Natalie Mitchem (13) combined for 30 kills to pace the Ball State attack. Mitchem hit for a dominating .545 mark with just one error in 22 swings. Setter Esther Grussing ran the offense with 39 assists and added 10 digs for a double-double.
The Cardinals (9-11) controlled the action throughout, racking up 10 blocks to two for Eastern Michigan (7-12) and outhitting the Eagles, .303 to .118.
"It was a great team performance tonight," BSU head coach Kelli Miller Phillips said. "We got off to a fast start and kept the momentum going all night. We had a lot of success running behind the setter, and our ball control allowed us to do so. Kia played great and really led us emotionally and at the net all night."
Ball State was never really threatened in the match. The Cardinals built leads of as many as 10 points in the first set and nine in the third, as they rolled to wins in those frames.
The middle portion of the second set was the only time things tightened up a touch. Eastern Michigan pulled to within two at 16-14, but Ball State responded be winning seven of the next eight points to regain complete control. Mitchem had three kills in that decisive stretch.
"Natalie was on fire tonight," Miller Phillips said. "She worked hard to put herself in great positions to get kills and was rewarded for her efforts.
"Our focus is to be playing our best volleyball to finish the year, so we want to use tonight's effort to build on for an event stronger finish tomorrow."
Franki Strefling paced the Eastern Michigan attack with 12 kills on the night, while Alayna Jansky registered a team-high 12 digs.
The teams will square off one more time Saturday in the season's final match. First serve is slated for 4 p.m. from the EMU Convocation Center on ESPN3.
Kia Holder (17) and Natalie Mitchem (13) combined for 30 kills to pace the Ball State attack. Mitchem hit for a dominating .545 mark with just one error in 22 swings. Setter Esther Grussing ran the offense with 39 assists and added 10 digs for a double-double.
The Cardinals (9-11) controlled the action throughout, racking up 10 blocks to two for Eastern Michigan (7-12) and outhitting the Eagles, .303 to .118.
"It was a great team performance tonight," BSU head coach Kelli Miller Phillips said. "We got off to a fast start and kept the momentum going all night. We had a lot of success running behind the setter, and our ball control allowed us to do so. Kia played great and really led us emotionally and at the net all night."
Ball State was never really threatened in the match. The Cardinals built leads of as many as 10 points in the first set and nine in the third, as they rolled to wins in those frames.
The middle portion of the second set was the only time things tightened up a touch. Eastern Michigan pulled to within two at 16-14, but Ball State responded be winning seven of the next eight points to regain complete control. Mitchem had three kills in that decisive stretch.
"Natalie was on fire tonight," Miller Phillips said. "She worked hard to put herself in great positions to get kills and was rewarded for her efforts.
"Our focus is to be playing our best volleyball to finish the year, so we want to use tonight's effort to build on for an event stronger finish tomorrow."
Franki Strefling paced the Eastern Michigan attack with 12 kills on the night, while Alayna Jansky registered a team-high 12 digs.
The teams will square off one more time Saturday in the season's final match. First serve is slated for 4 p.m. from the EMU Convocation Center on ESPN3.
Team Stats
BSU
EMU
Kills
49
34
Errors
12
20
Attempts
122
119
Hitting %
.303
.118
Points
62
38
Assists
46
34
Aces
3
2
Blocks
10
2
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
17
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Kills
13
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
7
Aces
0
Blocks
4
Kills
6
Aces
0
Blocks
5
Players Mentioned
S
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