Sunday, November 24
Bowling Green, Ohio
4 p.m.
Ball State University
22-10,13-5MAC
0
vs
3
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Western Michigan
20-12,13-5MAC
1
2
3
F
Western Mich.
25
25
25
3
Ball St.
21
12
13
0
Photo by: Brayden Goins / Ball State Athletics
Volleyball Falls In MAC Championship Match
November 24, 2024 | Women's Volleyball
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - - Despite 12 kills from Mid-American Conference Freshman of the Year Carson Tyler, third-seeded Ball State suffered a 3-0 (25-21, 25-12, 25-13) setback to fourth-seeded Western Michigan in the title match of the 2024 Mid-American Conference Volleyball Championship.
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The Cardinals (22-10) could never find its rhythm in the Stroh Center against the Broncos (20-12) squad which took down top-seeded Bowling Green in Saturday's semifinal action. In that five-set thriller, WMU scored the first seven points in the fifth frame and never looked back.
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Unfortunately, Western Michigan carried over the momentum in Sunday's match, countering a 3-0 Ball State run to start the match with six of the next seven. WMU would hold a 15-12 edge at the court switch, before three kills and a block from Tyler helped the Cardinals pull ahead 17-15.
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BSU would maintain the lead at 19-18, before WMU scored six straight to take control of the match and would never trail again the rest of the afternoon.
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Along with her team-high 12 kills, Tyler chipped in 13 digs for her sixth double-double of the season. She also led the Ball State defense with a pair of block assists, while hitting .367 (12-1-30).
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Junior opposite Madison Buckley was second on the squad with seven kills, while junior outside Katie Egenolf finished the day with six.
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Ball State freshman libero Sophie Ledbetter paced all players with 18 digs, while senior setter Megan Wielonski dished out a team-high 27 assists. She also served up one more ace, raising her career total to 197.
For their efforts over Ball State's three-day run at the MAC Volleyball Championship, Tyler and Wielonski were both named to the all-tournament team.
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Julia Marr led the WMU attack with 14 kills, while Carley Piercefield collected a team-best 14 digs. Overall, the Broncos hit .394 (51-8-109) in the sweep, while limiting the Cardinals to a .196 (36-14-112) rate of success.
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The Cardinals (22-10) could never find its rhythm in the Stroh Center against the Broncos (20-12) squad which took down top-seeded Bowling Green in Saturday's semifinal action. In that five-set thriller, WMU scored the first seven points in the fifth frame and never looked back.
Â
Unfortunately, Western Michigan carried over the momentum in Sunday's match, countering a 3-0 Ball State run to start the match with six of the next seven. WMU would hold a 15-12 edge at the court switch, before three kills and a block from Tyler helped the Cardinals pull ahead 17-15.
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BSU would maintain the lead at 19-18, before WMU scored six straight to take control of the match and would never trail again the rest of the afternoon.
Â
Along with her team-high 12 kills, Tyler chipped in 13 digs for her sixth double-double of the season. She also led the Ball State defense with a pair of block assists, while hitting .367 (12-1-30).
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Junior opposite Madison Buckley was second on the squad with seven kills, while junior outside Katie Egenolf finished the day with six.
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Ball State freshman libero Sophie Ledbetter paced all players with 18 digs, while senior setter Megan Wielonski dished out a team-high 27 assists. She also served up one more ace, raising her career total to 197.
For their efforts over Ball State's three-day run at the MAC Volleyball Championship, Tyler and Wielonski were both named to the all-tournament team.
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Julia Marr led the WMU attack with 14 kills, while Carley Piercefield collected a team-best 14 digs. Overall, the Broncos hit .394 (51-8-109) in the sweep, while limiting the Cardinals to a .196 (36-14-112) rate of success.
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Team Stats
WMU
BSU
Kills
51
36
Errors
8
14
Attempts
109
112
Hitting %
.394
.196
Points
64.0
40.0
Assists
48
36
Aces
6
1
Blocks
7
3
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
12
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
7
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
5
Aces
0
Blocks
0
Kills
4
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Players Mentioned
OPP
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's Volleyball
DS
/ Women's VolleyballOH
/ Women's Volleyball
S
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