Tuesday, November 12
Muncie, IN
6 p.m.
Ball State University
19-8,12-4MAC
3
vs
0
Miami
7-20,1-15MAC
1
2
3
F
Miami (OH)
16
20
19
0
Ball St.
25
25
25
3
Smith’s 400th Career Block Caps Record Setting Sweep of Miami
November 12, 2024 | Women's Volleyball
MUNCIE, Ind. - - Ball State graduate middle Aayinde Smith put a punctuation mark on a terrific night, capping a 3-0 (25-16, 25-20, 25-19) sweep of visiting Miami with her 400th career block Tuesday night in Worthen Arena.
Smith, who entered the night eight blocks shy of the mark, and the rest of the Cardinals (19-8; 12-4 Mid-American Conference) defense wasted little time setting the tone at the net, starting the match with its first of 13.0 total blocks. The effort helped limit the RedHawks (7-20; 1-15 MAC) to a .076 (33-25-105) attack percentage for the night, its fourth-lowest mark of the season.
"Our blocking presence was huge right from the start tonight," head coach Kelli Miller Phillips said. "Right from the get-go, we had a block to open the match and one rally where we had four-or-five block touches in a row. That makes a difference. I think the physicality of our block forces people to have to hit pretty special shots to score."
Smith would tally her first two blocks on back-to-back points, combining with junior opposite Madison Buckley, to give BSU a 10-4 edge in the opening set. She finished the night with eight, raising her Ball State career total to 114 and her overall career total to 400 after collecting 386 over her four-year career at Towson.
Buckley would finish the night with five total blocks, as would sophomore middle Camryn Wise. Overall, seven different Ball State players were credited with at least one block.
The effort played a large role in helping the Cardinals extend its current set winning streak to nine matches, while also setting program records for consecutive sets won, at 25, and consecutive match sweeps, at eight.
As much as BSU's play at the net shined, the offense was nearly as efficient with the team's second-best hitting mark of the season at .402 (47-10-92). Three different Cardinals tied for match-high honors with 10 kills, while three others registered five kills each.
"I think a strength of our team is our offensive balance and our ability to ball handle so that we can get multiple people the ball," Phillips added. "It's great to be able to have a variety of people hit at a high level."
Buckley, redshirt sophomore opposite Aniya Kennedy and freshman outside Carson Tyler with the Ball State attackers with 10 kills each. Kennedy would lead the trio, as well as all players in the match, with a .600 (10-1-15) rate of success.
Buckley was not far behind, at .533 (10-2-15), while her five total blocks helped her finish the night with a match-best 12.5 points. Tyler rounded out the group with .350 (10-3-20) hitting mark.
Setting the offense was the 6-2 paring of senior Megan Wielonski and sophomore Lindsey Green who finished the night with 24 and 16 assists, respectively. Since Ball State has turned to the 6-2 offense, the pair have led the Cardinals to a .307 hitting mark and a 10-1 overall record.
Rounding out the key contributors in the win was reigning MAC Defensive Player of the Week Sophie Ledbetter who paced all players with 10 digs.
Caroline Cermack led the Miami attack and tied for match-high honors with 10 kills, while added a team-best nine digs.
The Ball State women's volleyball team returns to action Friday when it hosts Western Michigan for Greek Night in Worthen Arena. First serve is set for 6 p.m. and the Ball State Greek organization with the largest attendance will receive a free pizza party courtesy of Ball State Athletics.
Smith, who entered the night eight blocks shy of the mark, and the rest of the Cardinals (19-8; 12-4 Mid-American Conference) defense wasted little time setting the tone at the net, starting the match with its first of 13.0 total blocks. The effort helped limit the RedHawks (7-20; 1-15 MAC) to a .076 (33-25-105) attack percentage for the night, its fourth-lowest mark of the season.
"Our blocking presence was huge right from the start tonight," head coach Kelli Miller Phillips said. "Right from the get-go, we had a block to open the match and one rally where we had four-or-five block touches in a row. That makes a difference. I think the physicality of our block forces people to have to hit pretty special shots to score."
Smith would tally her first two blocks on back-to-back points, combining with junior opposite Madison Buckley, to give BSU a 10-4 edge in the opening set. She finished the night with eight, raising her Ball State career total to 114 and her overall career total to 400 after collecting 386 over her four-year career at Towson.
Buckley would finish the night with five total blocks, as would sophomore middle Camryn Wise. Overall, seven different Ball State players were credited with at least one block.
The effort played a large role in helping the Cardinals extend its current set winning streak to nine matches, while also setting program records for consecutive sets won, at 25, and consecutive match sweeps, at eight.
As much as BSU's play at the net shined, the offense was nearly as efficient with the team's second-best hitting mark of the season at .402 (47-10-92). Three different Cardinals tied for match-high honors with 10 kills, while three others registered five kills each.
"I think a strength of our team is our offensive balance and our ability to ball handle so that we can get multiple people the ball," Phillips added. "It's great to be able to have a variety of people hit at a high level."
Buckley, redshirt sophomore opposite Aniya Kennedy and freshman outside Carson Tyler with the Ball State attackers with 10 kills each. Kennedy would lead the trio, as well as all players in the match, with a .600 (10-1-15) rate of success.
Buckley was not far behind, at .533 (10-2-15), while her five total blocks helped her finish the night with a match-best 12.5 points. Tyler rounded out the group with .350 (10-3-20) hitting mark.
Setting the offense was the 6-2 paring of senior Megan Wielonski and sophomore Lindsey Green who finished the night with 24 and 16 assists, respectively. Since Ball State has turned to the 6-2 offense, the pair have led the Cardinals to a .307 hitting mark and a 10-1 overall record.
Rounding out the key contributors in the win was reigning MAC Defensive Player of the Week Sophie Ledbetter who paced all players with 10 digs.
Caroline Cermack led the Miami attack and tied for match-high honors with 10 kills, while added a team-best nine digs.
The Ball State women's volleyball team returns to action Friday when it hosts Western Michigan for Greek Night in Worthen Arena. First serve is set for 6 p.m. and the Ball State Greek organization with the largest attendance will receive a free pizza party courtesy of Ball State Athletics.
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Team Stats
Miami
BSU
Kills
33
47
Errors
25
10
Attempts
105
92
Hitting %
.076
.402
Points
38.0
61.0
Assists
31
47
Aces
3
1
Blocks
2
13
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
10
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
10
Aces
0
Blocks
5
Kills
10
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Kills
5
Aces
0
Blocks
8
Players Mentioned
OPP
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's Volleyball
DS
/ Women's VolleyballMH
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's Volleyball
MH
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