Friday, September 3
Dayton, OH
7 p.m.
Ball State University
5-0,0-0MAC
3
at
1
Wright State
2-2,0-0Horizon
1
2
3
4
F
Ball St.
25
20
26
25
3
Wright St.
21
25
24
20
1
5-0; WVB Tops Wright State in Four Sets
September 03, 2021 | Women's Volleyball
DAYTON, Ohio - - In a battle of two of the region's top programs, the Ball State women's volleyball team opened the TRU By Hilton Dayton Beavercreek Invitational with an impressive 3-1 (25-21, 20-25, 26-24, 25-20) victory over host Wright State Friday evening at McLin Gymnasium.
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In improving to 5-0 on the season, the Cardinals took down a Raiders (2-2) squad which has earned a berth in each of the last two NCAA Tournaments. In fact, WSU pulled out an opening round win in the 2020-21 event before losing to eventual national runner-up Texas.
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"This was a great win for us," head coach Kelli Miller Phillips said. "Wright State is super experienced and makes you earn every point. It was a really fun, competitive environment and I am extremely happy with our mental toughness."
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Ball State was impressive in all facets of the match Friday, starting with a dynamic offensive attack which kept the host Raiders guessing all night.
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That started with a dominant opening set performance from junior opposite Natalie Mitchem who smashed eight of her match-leading 16 kills in the first frame.
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Junior outside Natalie Risi was not far behind, tallying a season-high 15 kills. It was her best performance in nearly two years after being limited by injury during the 2020-21 spring season.
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Graduate transfer outside Jaclyn Bulmahn added a Ball State career-high 15 kills, her third straight contest in double figures, while sophomore middle Lauren Gilliland recorded a season-high 12. Gilliland also led Ball State at the net with five total blocks.
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"Megan did a good job of balancing the offense and our hitters took really smart shots," Phillips said. "We had a lot of swing opportunities as Wright State didn't make many errors. I am pleased with how we stayed patient and just kept working to earn points."
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Those five blocks were just a part of an even better defensive effort for the Cardinals, which saw the team register 10 total blocks and 94 total digs. In fact, five players log double-digit digs to help the team average an astonishing 23.5 digs per set.
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Sophomore libero Kate Vinson led the way with a career-high 22 digs, while freshman setter Megan Wielonski collected a career-high 21
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Risi would add 14 digs to her 15 kills for her first kill/dig double-double of the season, while Wielonski dished out a career-high 51 assists to go along with her 21 digs for her first career assist/dig double-double.
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Also collecting double-figure digs for Ball State were junior transfer Havyn Gates with a career-high 16 and senior defensive specialist Cathryn Starck with a season-high 11.
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"Wright State gives a lot of strategic, off-speed balls and we put an emphasis on not just digging those but digging them with control so we could run all our attackers off that pass," Phillips added. "I thought our defense really executed that game plan well."
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Overall, the Cardinals hit .223 as a team while limiting WSU to a .164 rate of success. Ball State also held a 94 to 76 edge in total digs on the night.
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The Cardinals close play in the TRU By Hilton Dayton Beavercreek Invitational Saturday with matches versus DePaul (10 a.m.) and Marshall (5 p.m.).
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In improving to 5-0 on the season, the Cardinals took down a Raiders (2-2) squad which has earned a berth in each of the last two NCAA Tournaments. In fact, WSU pulled out an opening round win in the 2020-21 event before losing to eventual national runner-up Texas.
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"This was a great win for us," head coach Kelli Miller Phillips said. "Wright State is super experienced and makes you earn every point. It was a really fun, competitive environment and I am extremely happy with our mental toughness."
Â
Ball State was impressive in all facets of the match Friday, starting with a dynamic offensive attack which kept the host Raiders guessing all night.
Â
That started with a dominant opening set performance from junior opposite Natalie Mitchem who smashed eight of her match-leading 16 kills in the first frame.
Â
Junior outside Natalie Risi was not far behind, tallying a season-high 15 kills. It was her best performance in nearly two years after being limited by injury during the 2020-21 spring season.
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Graduate transfer outside Jaclyn Bulmahn added a Ball State career-high 15 kills, her third straight contest in double figures, while sophomore middle Lauren Gilliland recorded a season-high 12. Gilliland also led Ball State at the net with five total blocks.
Â
"Megan did a good job of balancing the offense and our hitters took really smart shots," Phillips said. "We had a lot of swing opportunities as Wright State didn't make many errors. I am pleased with how we stayed patient and just kept working to earn points."
Â
Those five blocks were just a part of an even better defensive effort for the Cardinals, which saw the team register 10 total blocks and 94 total digs. In fact, five players log double-digit digs to help the team average an astonishing 23.5 digs per set.
Â
Sophomore libero Kate Vinson led the way with a career-high 22 digs, while freshman setter Megan Wielonski collected a career-high 21
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Risi would add 14 digs to her 15 kills for her first kill/dig double-double of the season, while Wielonski dished out a career-high 51 assists to go along with her 21 digs for her first career assist/dig double-double.
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Also collecting double-figure digs for Ball State were junior transfer Havyn Gates with a career-high 16 and senior defensive specialist Cathryn Starck with a season-high 11.
Â
"Wright State gives a lot of strategic, off-speed balls and we put an emphasis on not just digging those but digging them with control so we could run all our attackers off that pass," Phillips added. "I thought our defense really executed that game plan well."
Â
Overall, the Cardinals hit .223 as a team while limiting WSU to a .164 rate of success. Ball State also held a 94 to 76 edge in total digs on the night.
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The Cardinals close play in the TRU By Hilton Dayton Beavercreek Invitational Saturday with matches versus DePaul (10 a.m.) and Marshall (5 p.m.).
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Team Stats
BSU
WSU
Kills
64
50
Errors
24
22
Attempts
179
171
Hitting %
.223
.164
Points
77
65.5
Assists
62
47
Aces
3
5
Blocks
10
10.5
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
16
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Kills
15
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
15
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
12
Aces
0
Blocks
5
Players Mentioned
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
DS
/ Women's VolleyballMB
/ Women's VolleyballOH / OPP
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's Volleyball
DS
/ Women's Volleyball
DS / S
/ Women's Volleyball
S
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