Friday, September 17
Muncie, IN
6:30 p.m.
Ball State University
9-2,0-0MAC
3
vs
0
Northern Kentucky
4-4,0-0Horizon
1
2
3
F
Northern Ky.
19
21
25
0
Ball St.
25
25
27
3
Photo by: Michael Hickey
Volleyball Sweeps NKU in Home Opener
September 17, 2021 | Women's Volleyball
MUNCIE, Ind. - - The Ball State women's volleyball team jumped on the gas early, hitting .486 (20-2-37) in the first set, on the way to opening the home portion of its 2021 fall slate with a 3-0 (25-19, 25-21, 27-25) victory over Northern Kentucky Friday night in Worthen Arena.
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"Offensively, we hit consistently and really low error," head coach Kelli Miller Phillips said. "We want a balanced offense and every hitter consistently getting the ball. Tonight, we got that once again, and that's a tribute to Megan running our offense well and our hitters putting themselves in position to get the ball."
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Led by 10 kills and a .562 (10-1-16) attack percentage from junior middle Marie Plitt, as well as 42 assists from freshman setter Megan Wielonski, the Cardinals (9-2) finished the day with a .299 (50-15-117) attack percentage.
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Ball State has hit at least .200 in 10 of its 11 matches so far this season, with tonight's effort versus the Norse (4-4) being its second-best of the season, trailing on the .476 (45-5-84) hitting mark versus St. Thomas on Aug. 27.
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Overall, three Cardinals finished the night with double-figure kills, as graduate transfer outside Jaclyn Bulmahn tagged a match-high 12, while junior opposite Natalie Mitchem added 10. In addition, graduate transfer outside Emily Hollowell scored nine.
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"Jaclyn did a nice job," Phillips added. "She gets a lot of tough sets and does great things with them. I thought she put some pop on the ball tonight and got some big blocks when we needed her. Marie also did a nice job. She got a couple of big block touches and every time she's in there, she seems to run up points right when we need it."
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On the defensive front, sophomore defensive specialist Kate Vinson led the BSU backcourt with 12 digs, while junior libero Natalie Risi was right behind with 10. Overall, Ball State held a slim 44-to-43 edge in digs, as well as a 3-to-2 advantage in aces with two coming from Wielonski.
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Anna Brinkmann led the NKU attack with 11 kills and added a match-high 13 digs. The Norse finished the contest hitting .204 (40-18-108) as a team and managed to out-block the Cardinals 9.0-to-5.0.
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After leading the entire way in the opening two sets to claim victory, Ball State found itself trailing by as many as five (8-3) early in the third set. However, back-to-back kills from Bulmahn helped tie bring the Cardinals within one, at 9-8. Moments later, a massive block from Wielonski and sophomore middle Lauren Gilliland tied the score at 11.
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The set remained tight with NKU looking to pull ahead 21-19. However, the Cardinals challenged the point and Bulmahn was awarded a kill to even the score at 20. The score would remain tied at 25-25, before a Mitchem kill gave BSU its first match-point.
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BSU would capitalize on another challenge for match point on the next rally, as Plitt smashed an overpass for a kill. While the officials originally let the play continue, replay confirmed Plitt's shot was down, giving BSU the match.
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Ball State and Northern Kentucky will meet again Saturday, this time for a 3 p.m. matinee in Worthen Arena. Following the contest, the Cardinals will host a FREE KIDS CLINIC for fans in 8th grade or younger. Details can be found by CLICKING HERE.
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"Offensively, we hit consistently and really low error," head coach Kelli Miller Phillips said. "We want a balanced offense and every hitter consistently getting the ball. Tonight, we got that once again, and that's a tribute to Megan running our offense well and our hitters putting themselves in position to get the ball."
Â
Led by 10 kills and a .562 (10-1-16) attack percentage from junior middle Marie Plitt, as well as 42 assists from freshman setter Megan Wielonski, the Cardinals (9-2) finished the day with a .299 (50-15-117) attack percentage.
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Ball State has hit at least .200 in 10 of its 11 matches so far this season, with tonight's effort versus the Norse (4-4) being its second-best of the season, trailing on the .476 (45-5-84) hitting mark versus St. Thomas on Aug. 27.
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Overall, three Cardinals finished the night with double-figure kills, as graduate transfer outside Jaclyn Bulmahn tagged a match-high 12, while junior opposite Natalie Mitchem added 10. In addition, graduate transfer outside Emily Hollowell scored nine.
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"Jaclyn did a nice job," Phillips added. "She gets a lot of tough sets and does great things with them. I thought she put some pop on the ball tonight and got some big blocks when we needed her. Marie also did a nice job. She got a couple of big block touches and every time she's in there, she seems to run up points right when we need it."
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On the defensive front, sophomore defensive specialist Kate Vinson led the BSU backcourt with 12 digs, while junior libero Natalie Risi was right behind with 10. Overall, Ball State held a slim 44-to-43 edge in digs, as well as a 3-to-2 advantage in aces with two coming from Wielonski.
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Anna Brinkmann led the NKU attack with 11 kills and added a match-high 13 digs. The Norse finished the contest hitting .204 (40-18-108) as a team and managed to out-block the Cardinals 9.0-to-5.0.
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After leading the entire way in the opening two sets to claim victory, Ball State found itself trailing by as many as five (8-3) early in the third set. However, back-to-back kills from Bulmahn helped tie bring the Cardinals within one, at 9-8. Moments later, a massive block from Wielonski and sophomore middle Lauren Gilliland tied the score at 11.
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The set remained tight with NKU looking to pull ahead 21-19. However, the Cardinals challenged the point and Bulmahn was awarded a kill to even the score at 20. The score would remain tied at 25-25, before a Mitchem kill gave BSU its first match-point.
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BSU would capitalize on another challenge for match point on the next rally, as Plitt smashed an overpass for a kill. While the officials originally let the play continue, replay confirmed Plitt's shot was down, giving BSU the match.
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Ball State and Northern Kentucky will meet again Saturday, this time for a 3 p.m. matinee in Worthen Arena. Following the contest, the Cardinals will host a FREE KIDS CLINIC for fans in 8th grade or younger. Details can be found by CLICKING HERE.
Team Stats
NKU
BSU
Kills
40
50
Errors
18
15
Attempts
108
117
Hitting %
.204
.299
Points
51
58
Assists
39
45
Aces
2
3
Blocks
9
5
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
12
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
10
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
10
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
9
Aces
0
Blocks
0
Players Mentioned
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's VolleyballOH / OPP
/ Women's VolleyballOH / OPP
/ Women's VolleyballMB
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
DS / S
/ Women's Volleyball
S
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