Thursday, March 4
Athens, OH
6:30 p.m.
Ball State University
6-5,6-5MAC
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Ohio
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Photo by: Ball State University Creative Services
No Panic; WVB’s Mental Toughness Leads to 3-2 Win at Ohio
March 04, 2021 | Women's Volleyball
ATHENS, Ohio - - Despite being down 2-0 in the match, there was no panic on the Ball State women's volleyball bench Thursday evening in an important Mid-American Conference match at Ohio.
Instead, the Cardinals (6-5, 6-5 MAC) broke a 14-set losing streak with a dominating 25-13 third set win. Then, Ball State survived three Bobcats (4-4, 4-4 MAC) set points in the fourth before eventually earning a 3-2 (25-27, 21-25, 25-13, 28-26, 15-11) victory at OU's Convocation Center.
"Our team showed a ton of mental toughness tonight," Ball State head coach Kelli Miller Phillips said after the win. "I loved our energy, we stayed the course and finally began to play how we're capable of playing. I'm super proud of the fight we showed."
In addition to snapping the 14-set losing streak, the Cardinals also snapped a four-match losing streak and were able to pick up a crucial win in the race to qualify for the four-team MAC Tournament at the beginning of April.
One streak that was not snapped however, Ball State's now five-match winning streak over Ohio which includes two MAC Tournament quarterfinal victories and two wins in Athens. Ball State will look to extend that streak Friday, with a 2 p.m. first serve against the Bobcats.
The area the Cardinals shined the most in tonight's win, offense. Ball State connected for an impressive .348 (67-13-155) attack percentage, including hitting .417 in both the first and third sets. In fact, the Cardinals did not log their first attack error until 10 points into the second set.
"Esther did a great job of moving the hitters around," Phillips said about the team's offensive performance. "Our hitters did a great job of hitting very smart shots. I loved our aggressiveness and I am proud of our hitters for stepping up in some very big moments tonight."
Redshirt sophomore setter Esther Grussing dished out a season-high 52 assists in the win, helping four Cardinals blast double-figure kills. She also logged a season-high 11 digs for her first double-double of 2021.
Sophomore opposite Natalie Mitchem led the Ball State offense with 16 kills, including the match winner. She also led Ball State's main attackers with a .412 (16-2-34) attack percentage.
Not far behind were sophomore middle Marie Plitt and senior outside Kia Holder with 15 apiece. Plitt's 15 kills were a career-high and she also collected three total blocks.
Sophomore outside Natalie Risi was the fourth Ball State attacker in double figures, scoring 10 kills to go along with a team-high 15 digs for her third double-double of the season.
At the net, freshman Lauren Gilliland led the charge with a match-high five total blocks, helping the Cardinals hold a 9-8 advantage in the category for the night.
Other key contributors on defense were sophomore libero Maggie Huber and freshman defensive specialist Kate Vinson with 12 and 10 digs, respectively. Combined, Ball State's defense held Ohio to a .257 (70-26-171) to help claim the win.
Lauren Park led the Ohio attack with 28 kills, while Sam Steele recorded a match-best 16 digs.
"I think our team gained a tremendous amount of confidence tonight," Phillips concluded. "We learned that if we just play disciplined and hard, good results will follow."
Instead, the Cardinals (6-5, 6-5 MAC) broke a 14-set losing streak with a dominating 25-13 third set win. Then, Ball State survived three Bobcats (4-4, 4-4 MAC) set points in the fourth before eventually earning a 3-2 (25-27, 21-25, 25-13, 28-26, 15-11) victory at OU's Convocation Center.
"Our team showed a ton of mental toughness tonight," Ball State head coach Kelli Miller Phillips said after the win. "I loved our energy, we stayed the course and finally began to play how we're capable of playing. I'm super proud of the fight we showed."
In addition to snapping the 14-set losing streak, the Cardinals also snapped a four-match losing streak and were able to pick up a crucial win in the race to qualify for the four-team MAC Tournament at the beginning of April.
One streak that was not snapped however, Ball State's now five-match winning streak over Ohio which includes two MAC Tournament quarterfinal victories and two wins in Athens. Ball State will look to extend that streak Friday, with a 2 p.m. first serve against the Bobcats.
The area the Cardinals shined the most in tonight's win, offense. Ball State connected for an impressive .348 (67-13-155) attack percentage, including hitting .417 in both the first and third sets. In fact, the Cardinals did not log their first attack error until 10 points into the second set.
"Esther did a great job of moving the hitters around," Phillips said about the team's offensive performance. "Our hitters did a great job of hitting very smart shots. I loved our aggressiveness and I am proud of our hitters for stepping up in some very big moments tonight."
Redshirt sophomore setter Esther Grussing dished out a season-high 52 assists in the win, helping four Cardinals blast double-figure kills. She also logged a season-high 11 digs for her first double-double of 2021.
Sophomore opposite Natalie Mitchem led the Ball State offense with 16 kills, including the match winner. She also led Ball State's main attackers with a .412 (16-2-34) attack percentage.
Not far behind were sophomore middle Marie Plitt and senior outside Kia Holder with 15 apiece. Plitt's 15 kills were a career-high and she also collected three total blocks.
Sophomore outside Natalie Risi was the fourth Ball State attacker in double figures, scoring 10 kills to go along with a team-high 15 digs for her third double-double of the season.
At the net, freshman Lauren Gilliland led the charge with a match-high five total blocks, helping the Cardinals hold a 9-8 advantage in the category for the night.
Other key contributors on defense were sophomore libero Maggie Huber and freshman defensive specialist Kate Vinson with 12 and 10 digs, respectively. Combined, Ball State's defense held Ohio to a .257 (70-26-171) to help claim the win.
Lauren Park led the Ohio attack with 28 kills, while Sam Steele recorded a match-best 16 digs.
"I think our team gained a tremendous amount of confidence tonight," Phillips concluded. "We learned that if we just play disciplined and hard, good results will follow."
Team Stats
BSU
Ohio
Kills
67
70
Errors
13
26
Attempts
155
171
Hitting %
.348
.257
Points
79
81
Assists
56
66
Aces
3
3
Blocks
9
8
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
16
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
15
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Kills
15
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Kills
10
Aces
1
Blocks
3
Players Mentioned
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's Volleyball
DS
/ Women's VolleyballOH / OPP
/ Women's VolleyballMB
/ Women's VolleyballOH
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