
Photo by: Samantha Blankenship / Ball State University
Volleyball Falls To MAC-Leading Buffalo
October 12, 2024 | Women's Volleyball
MUNCIE, Ind. - - The Ball State women's volleyball team could not slow down a hot Buffalo offense, suffering a 3-1 (25-22, 22-25, 25-23, 25-23) setback to the Mid-American Conference leaders Saturday afternoon in Worthen Arena.
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"Overall, I thought we had moments where we looked really good, playing good defensively and working hard," head coach Kelli Miller Phillips said. "We still have several things we must get better at. Several things we must continue to put work on. I knew we were going to have some growing pains with the 6-2, but what I told the group at the end is we just have to stay the course. Keep trusting the process."
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After hitting a season-best last night, the Cardinals (10-8; 3-4 MAC) still turned in a solid effort Saturday, finishing the day at a .200 clip. However, the league-leading Bulls (10-10; 6-1 MAC) were able to connect for a .242 rate of success to score the win. Overall, UB leads the league with a .266 hitting mark in #MACtion.
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On the Ball State side of the net, junior opposite Madison Buckley led the offense with a season-high 14 kills, while hitting .300 (14-5-30). She also collected five total blocks.
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Redshirt sophomore outside Aniya Kennedy was second on the squad with 13 kills and a .321 (13-4-28) attack percentage, while junior outside Katie Egenolf added second kills and a team-high .368 (7-0-19) hitting mark.
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Graduate middle Aayinde Smith followed her stellar offensive night Friday with eight more kills Saturday. She also led all players and tied her collegiate high with 10 total blocks. Smith's play at the net helped the Cardinals hold a 13.0-to-10.0 edge in team blocks.
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Ball State also held a 9-to-6 advantage in service aces, led by three from junior libero Josie Bloom. BSU's dual setters, senior Megan Wielonski and sophomore Lindsey Green, served up two aces each.
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Four Cardinals also finished the match with double-digit digs, led by 13 each from Wielonski and freshman libero Sophie Ledbetter. Green added a career-high 12, while Egenolf tied her career-best with 10.
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Buffalo's Katrin Trebichavska led all players with 23 kills and added a match-high 17 digs.
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"It's a long season and there is still a lot of volleyball to be played," Phillips added. "We just want to make sure we are growing every single week, and I felt like we got better from last week to this week."
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The Ball State women's volleyball team returns to action Friday (Oct. 18) with a 6 p.m. first serve at Ohio. From there, the Cardinals will travel to Kent State for a 4 p.m. match up Saturday.
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"Overall, I thought we had moments where we looked really good, playing good defensively and working hard," head coach Kelli Miller Phillips said. "We still have several things we must get better at. Several things we must continue to put work on. I knew we were going to have some growing pains with the 6-2, but what I told the group at the end is we just have to stay the course. Keep trusting the process."
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After hitting a season-best last night, the Cardinals (10-8; 3-4 MAC) still turned in a solid effort Saturday, finishing the day at a .200 clip. However, the league-leading Bulls (10-10; 6-1 MAC) were able to connect for a .242 rate of success to score the win. Overall, UB leads the league with a .266 hitting mark in #MACtion.
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On the Ball State side of the net, junior opposite Madison Buckley led the offense with a season-high 14 kills, while hitting .300 (14-5-30). She also collected five total blocks.
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Redshirt sophomore outside Aniya Kennedy was second on the squad with 13 kills and a .321 (13-4-28) attack percentage, while junior outside Katie Egenolf added second kills and a team-high .368 (7-0-19) hitting mark.
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Graduate middle Aayinde Smith followed her stellar offensive night Friday with eight more kills Saturday. She also led all players and tied her collegiate high with 10 total blocks. Smith's play at the net helped the Cardinals hold a 13.0-to-10.0 edge in team blocks.
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Ball State also held a 9-to-6 advantage in service aces, led by three from junior libero Josie Bloom. BSU's dual setters, senior Megan Wielonski and sophomore Lindsey Green, served up two aces each.
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Four Cardinals also finished the match with double-digit digs, led by 13 each from Wielonski and freshman libero Sophie Ledbetter. Green added a career-high 12, while Egenolf tied her career-best with 10.
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Buffalo's Katrin Trebichavska led all players with 23 kills and added a match-high 17 digs.
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"It's a long season and there is still a lot of volleyball to be played," Phillips added. "We just want to make sure we are growing every single week, and I felt like we got better from last week to this week."
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The Ball State women's volleyball team returns to action Friday (Oct. 18) with a 6 p.m. first serve at Ohio. From there, the Cardinals will travel to Kent State for a 4 p.m. match up Saturday.
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Team Stats
UB
BSU
Kills
64
51
Errors
24
21
Attempts
165
150
Hitting %
.242
.200
Points
80.0
73.0
Assists
62
49
Aces
6
9
Blocks
10
13
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Players Mentioned
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