Saturday, August 26
Muncie, IN
1 p.m.
Ball State University
1-1,0-0MAC
1
vs
3
Oklahoma
3-0,0-0Big 12
1
2
3
4
F
Oklahoma
18
25
25
25
3
Ball St.
25
22
13
18
1
Volleyball Tops Purdue Fort Wayne To Close Opening Weekend
August 26, 2023 | Women's Volleyball
MUNCIE, Ind. - - In another dominating performance, the Ball State women's volleyball team closed opening weekend with a 3-0 (25-18, 25-11, 25-21) sweep of in-state rival Purdue Fort Wayne Saturday night in Worthen Arena.
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The Cardinals (2-1) rebounded from a morning loss to Oklahoma by controlling play from start to finish against the Mastodons (0-3). Junior setter Megan Wielonski led the way, running the offense at a .372 (44-9-94) clip, handing out 39 assists and guiding Ball State to its 20th match hitting at-or-above .300 in her collegiate career.
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Wielonski and fifth-year middle Marie Plitt, who finished the nightcap with a match-high 10 kills, were named to the Ball State Invitational All-Tournament Team for their performance over the team's three matches.
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"After our match versus Oklahoma this afternoon, we had to reset and take this as a new opportunity, which I knew we were capable of doing," head coach Kelli Miller Phillips said. "We're still trying to figure out a lot of things as a team, with different people in different spots. I thought they responded well and that's the whole point of these non-conference matches, to get a little better and experiment with some things so you are ready to go come conference play."
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Plitt was nearly unstoppable in the win over Purdue Fort Wayne, connecting at a .750 (10-1-12) clip, while also serving up an ace, adding two digs and recording a block assist.
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Three other Cardinals chipped in nine kills, including redshirt freshman outside Aniya Kennedy, sophomore opposite Madison Buckley and senior middle Lauren Gilliland. Kennedy's nine kills were a career high, and she also hit .467 (9-2-15) in the win. Buckley connected for a .500 (9-1-16) rate of success, while Gilliland hit .350 (9-2-20).
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In addition to her 39 assists, Wielonski added nine digs, two block assists and two more service aces. One of the nation's top servers over the past two season, she served up six total aces in the tournament to raise her career total to 110.
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In the backcourt, fifth-year libero Havyn Gates led all players with 16 digs, while junior defensive specialist Kendall Seimet registered nine to go along with a pair of service aces.
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To open the day, the Cardinals capitalized on some strong serving from Wielonski to win the first set versus the Sooners (3-0). Unfortunately, Oklahoma would rally to take the next three sets and claim the tournament title.
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With Ball State trailing 15-13 in the first frame, Wielonski went back to the line and served up 11 straight Cardinals points to give the hosts set point at 24-15. The rally included her fourth ace of the young season. After Oklahoma answered with the next three points, Buckley capped the frame with one of her eight kills on the afternoon.
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Unfortunately for the Cardinals, Oklahoma's Alexis Shelton would heat up from there, scoring 22 of her match-high 26 kills over the final three sets to help lead the Sooners to the win.
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"We ran into a hot player this afternoon in Alexis Shelton," Phillips said. "Shelton had 26 kills and we tired a variety of different blocking schemes and defenses to slow her down. She was unbelievable today and I felt like that really took the wind out of our sails, even offensively. We battled hard and were right with them late in set two, having an opportunity to go up two sets. It's a good lesson for us to learn that you need to capitalize when you have those opportunities against great teams."Â
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Wielonski would lead all players with 24 service attempts in the match, while dishing out 31 assists and securing 11 digs for the 39th double-double of her collegiate career. She also scored six kills and hit .667 (6-0-9), while leading the Ball State offense to a .200 (44-17-135) rate of success.
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Senior outside Cait Snyder led the Cardinals with 10 kills, while Plitt logged 10. The match also saw Kennedy score four kills and freshman outside Kendall Barnes collect two kills in their collegiate debuts.
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In the backcourt, Seimet collected a career-high 11 digs, while Gates added 10. Seimet was also a perfect 20-for-20 in serve receive.
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Meanwhile at the net, Gilliland tied for match-high honors with six total blocks, including a pair of solo stuffs. The effort helped the Cardinals tally a season-high 10.0 total blocks for the match.
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The Ball State women's volleyball team returns to action Friday, when it opens play in the three-day Bluejay Invitational with a 7 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. CT showdown versus host Creighton.
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The Cardinals (2-1) rebounded from a morning loss to Oklahoma by controlling play from start to finish against the Mastodons (0-3). Junior setter Megan Wielonski led the way, running the offense at a .372 (44-9-94) clip, handing out 39 assists and guiding Ball State to its 20th match hitting at-or-above .300 in her collegiate career.
Â
Wielonski and fifth-year middle Marie Plitt, who finished the nightcap with a match-high 10 kills, were named to the Ball State Invitational All-Tournament Team for their performance over the team's three matches.
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"After our match versus Oklahoma this afternoon, we had to reset and take this as a new opportunity, which I knew we were capable of doing," head coach Kelli Miller Phillips said. "We're still trying to figure out a lot of things as a team, with different people in different spots. I thought they responded well and that's the whole point of these non-conference matches, to get a little better and experiment with some things so you are ready to go come conference play."
Â
Plitt was nearly unstoppable in the win over Purdue Fort Wayne, connecting at a .750 (10-1-12) clip, while also serving up an ace, adding two digs and recording a block assist.
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Three other Cardinals chipped in nine kills, including redshirt freshman outside Aniya Kennedy, sophomore opposite Madison Buckley and senior middle Lauren Gilliland. Kennedy's nine kills were a career high, and she also hit .467 (9-2-15) in the win. Buckley connected for a .500 (9-1-16) rate of success, while Gilliland hit .350 (9-2-20).
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In addition to her 39 assists, Wielonski added nine digs, two block assists and two more service aces. One of the nation's top servers over the past two season, she served up six total aces in the tournament to raise her career total to 110.
Â
In the backcourt, fifth-year libero Havyn Gates led all players with 16 digs, while junior defensive specialist Kendall Seimet registered nine to go along with a pair of service aces.
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To open the day, the Cardinals capitalized on some strong serving from Wielonski to win the first set versus the Sooners (3-0). Unfortunately, Oklahoma would rally to take the next three sets and claim the tournament title.
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With Ball State trailing 15-13 in the first frame, Wielonski went back to the line and served up 11 straight Cardinals points to give the hosts set point at 24-15. The rally included her fourth ace of the young season. After Oklahoma answered with the next three points, Buckley capped the frame with one of her eight kills on the afternoon.
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Unfortunately for the Cardinals, Oklahoma's Alexis Shelton would heat up from there, scoring 22 of her match-high 26 kills over the final three sets to help lead the Sooners to the win.
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"We ran into a hot player this afternoon in Alexis Shelton," Phillips said. "Shelton had 26 kills and we tired a variety of different blocking schemes and defenses to slow her down. She was unbelievable today and I felt like that really took the wind out of our sails, even offensively. We battled hard and were right with them late in set two, having an opportunity to go up two sets. It's a good lesson for us to learn that you need to capitalize when you have those opportunities against great teams."Â
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Wielonski would lead all players with 24 service attempts in the match, while dishing out 31 assists and securing 11 digs for the 39th double-double of her collegiate career. She also scored six kills and hit .667 (6-0-9), while leading the Ball State offense to a .200 (44-17-135) rate of success.
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Senior outside Cait Snyder led the Cardinals with 10 kills, while Plitt logged 10. The match also saw Kennedy score four kills and freshman outside Kendall Barnes collect two kills in their collegiate debuts.
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In the backcourt, Seimet collected a career-high 11 digs, while Gates added 10. Seimet was also a perfect 20-for-20 in serve receive.
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Meanwhile at the net, Gilliland tied for match-high honors with six total blocks, including a pair of solo stuffs. The effort helped the Cardinals tally a season-high 10.0 total blocks for the match.
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The Ball State women's volleyball team returns to action Friday, when it opens play in the three-day Bluejay Invitational with a 7 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. CT showdown versus host Creighton.
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Team Stats
OU
BSU
Kills
57
44
Errors
21
17
Attempts
144
135
Hitting %
.250
.200
Points
76.5
56.0
Assists
55
41
Aces
9
2
Blocks
10.5
10
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
10
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Kills
8
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
6
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Kills
6
Aces
1
Blocks
1
Players Mentioned
OH
/ Women's VolleyballOPP
/ Women's Volleyball
DS/L
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's VolleyballMB
/ Women's Volleyball
DS/L
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's VolleyballS
/ Women's VolleyballWomen's Volleyball // 2025 First Practice Recap
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