WVB Earns Wins Over South Alabama and USF on Opening Day

TAMPA, Fla. - - In a battle of two NCAA Tournament programs from last season, the Ball State women's volleyball team rebounded from dropping the first set to earn a 3-1 (21-25, 25-19, 25-23, 25-23) victory over South Alabama Friday morning in its opening match of the 2022 season.

The Cardinals (2-0) went on to close the day with an even tougher match, battling through five sets to take out tournament host USF and finish the opening day of the USF Opening Weekend Invite with an unblemished record.

"I loved how we maintained great composure in tight moments today," head coach Kelli Miller Phillips said. "We had people make big plays in big moments, and I am proud of our resilience. South Alabama and USF are very physical teams. They have heavy arms and played with great intensity which gave us a big challenge on day one. We did a nice job of adjusting on the fly and staying tough in the big moments."

2-0 on the day ... This block from @10laureng & @megan_wielonski gives us the 5-set #VICTORY over USF??

Back at it tomorrow vs. William & Mary at 11a#ChirpChirp x #WeFly x #MACtion pic.twitter.com/0V4HL6w5UI
— Ball State Volleyball ?? (@BallStateWVB) August 27, 2022

Ball State closes play in the event Saturday morning with an 11 a.m. first serve versus William & Mary back at the Corral.

MATCH 1 RECAP: Ball State 3 - South Alabama 1 - BOX SCORE
Ball State used a familiar recipe to earn its 21st win in the last 22 matches, with six players scoring at least seven kills as the team hit .250 (61-21-160) against a Jaguars (0-1) squad which limited its opponents to a .149 rate of success last season.

Thanks to back-to-back blocks to end it, we open the season with a 3-1 #VICTORY over a tough South Alabama squad@MariePlitt & @addiehalverson w/12 kills apiece ... @risinatalie w/11

Back at it later tonight vs. USF at 7p#ChirpChirp x #WeFly x #MACtion pic.twitter.com/4jiJ2E8w1r
— Ball State Volleyball ?? (@BallStateWVB) August 26, 2022

Leading the way was BSU's middle duo of senior Marie Plitt and junior Lauren Gilliland. Plitt paced the Cardinals with 13 kills and hit .379 (13-2-29), while Gilliland smashed nine kills and hit .333 (9-1-24). Gilliland also led the Ball State defense with four blocks, including back-to-back block assists to cap the final set.

In her first match in the Cardinal and White, graduate transfer outside Addie Halverson made an immediate impact by finishing second on the squad with 12 kills, while adding three digs and three total blocks.

Rounding out Ball State's top attackers in the win were senior outside Natalie Risi with 11 kills and senior opposite Natalie Mitchem with eight. Risi also added 13 digs for her first double-double of the season.

Reigning Mid-American Conference Freshman of the Year Megan Wielonski also turned in an impressive start, handing out 43 assists to go along with seven kills and a .583 (7-0-12) attack percentage of her own.

In the backcourt, senior libero Maggie Huber led all players with 17 digs and served up one of BSU's six aces. Junior defensive specialist Kate Vinson followed with 14 digs, while senior Havyn Gates added 13.

Also making their Ball State debuts Friday morning were freshman Katie Egenolf with one kill and a block assist and graduate transfer Julianna Cramer with a service ace.

Overall, the Ball State defense limited South Alabama to a .201 hitting percentage for the match, well below its mark of .234 from last season which ranked 77th nationally.

The Cardinals also held a 61-to-49 lead in team kills and a 6-to-5 edge in service aces. The Jaguars held a slim 9.0-to-8.0 advantage in team blocks.

MATCH 2 RECAP: Ball State 3 - USF 2 - BOX SCORE
As exciting as Friday's season opener was, the nightcap was even more exhilarating, as Ball State and USF battled to a 13-13 deadlock in the fifth set.

Cue Mitchem, who followed with her fourth kill of the set and eighth of the night to give the Cardinals their third match point of the night. After the Bulls (1-1) survived the first two in the fourth set, Ball State would not be denied on the third.

Gilliland and Wielonski follow the kill with a huge block to set off a jubilant celebration from the Cardinals bench as BSU capped a 2-0 opening day.

It was another solid all-around offensive effort for Ball State which finished the match hitting .289 (67-15-180). Leading the way was Halverson who tied her collegiate high with 19 kills and finished the contest hitting .300 (19-4-50).

With USF focused on shutting down Ball State's potent middle attack, Risi also turned in strong numbers, collecting her second double-double of the day with 16 kills and 15 digs.

From the middle, both Plitt and Gilliland scored eight kills, with Gilliland hitting .389 (8-1-18) and leading all players with a career-high tying nine total blocks.

Also turning in a strong performance was freshman Madison Buckley who registered her first five collegiate kills, including the set three winner.

Guiding it all was Wielonski, who dished out 47 more assists and chipped in a career-high 22 digs. She also served up four of BSU's five aces and scored a pair of kills.

Huber also registered 20 digs in the win, while Vinson secured 13.

Overall, the Ball State defense limited USF to a .209 (69-30-187) attack percentage and out-blocked the Bulls 14.0-to-9.0, including a pair of late blocks in the fifth set. USF would hold a 69-to-67 edge in kills, a 87-to-83 advantage in digs, and a 14-to-5 lead in aces.

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Team Stats

Marie Plitt

Addie Halverson

Natalie Risi

Lauren Gilliland

Players Mentioned

Madison Buckley

Julianna Cramer

Katie Egenolf

Havyn Gates

Lauren Gilliland

Addie Halverson

Maggie Huber

Natalie Mitchem

Marie Plitt

Natalie Risi

Kate Vinson

Megan Wielonski