Ball State University Athletics
Thursday, September 3
Fairborn, OH
6 p.m.
Ball State University
3-0,0-0MAC
3
vs
1
Western Kentucky
2-2,0-0CUSA
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Western Ky. | 25 | 20 | 17 | 21 | 1 |
| Ball St. | 20 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
Photo by: Shane DiMantova - Ball State Athletics
Volleyball Tops Western Kentucky in Tru by Hilton Opener
September 03, 2026 | Women's Volleyball
FAIRBORN, Ohio - - After dropping the opening set, the Ball State women's volleyball team found its rhythm Thursday night, rallying to earn a 3-1 (20-25, 25-20, 25-17, 25-21) victory over Conference USA preseason favorite Western Kentucky in its opening match of the Tru by Hilton Beavercreek Invitational hosted by Wright State.
"I'm very proud of our group for just staying the course," head coach Kelli Miller Phillips said. "No matter the score, we just kept plugging away, playing hard and good things started to happen. That was another great show of toughness from the whole group!"
Already down one set and trailing 4-1 in the second, the Cardinals (3-0) rattled off six straight points to gain some much-needed momentum. That was just one of several big point runs for Ball State over the final three frames, including 7-0 start in the fourth, as they handed the Hilltoppers (2-2) its second loss of the season.
Leading the way for the BSU offense against a WKU squad which received votes in the latest American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Top 25 Coaches Poll was junior outside Ava Smith with a career-high 19 kills. She also added 11 digs for her second double-double of the season.
Also coming up huge on the offensive front for the Cardinals were junior outside Audrey Geer and junior opposition Tiffany Snook with 15 and 10 kills, respectively. Geer's 15 kills and 15 digs, for her second double-double of the year, were season highs, as was Snook's .304 (10-3-23) attack percentage.
Overall, the Cardinals finished the night with a season-best .301 (55-14-136) hitting mark, led by a .444 (19-3-36) effort from Smith and a .400 (8-2-15) rate of success from fifth-year senior middle Madison Buckley.
"Our setters did a great job of spreading the offense, getting multiple everyone involved and making big time sets when we needed it," Phillips added.
Leading the offense was the setting duo of senior Lindsey Green and sophomore Reese Axness with 24 and 20 assists, respectively. Green would also tally 13 digs for her second double-double of the season, while Axness added a pair.
Rounding out Ball State's key contributors was junior libero Sophie Ledbetter who tied for match-high honors with 18 digs. The effort raised her career total to 969, leaving her 31 digs shy of becoming the 22nd player in program history to reach 1,000 career digs.
Another key in the victory for the Cardinals was limiting service miscues, while capitalizing on the Hilltoppers' errors. While WKU was able to serve up 11 aces, it also registered 15 service errors to help Ball State maintain its pressure down the stretch.
"WKU had some big-time servers that brought heat and our passers really had to battle all night," Phillips said. "I do believe our servers rose to the challenge though and kept the pressure on them consistently which was a big reason for our win tonight."
Conversely, BSU would serve up a season-high five aces, led by three from Geer, and commit just four service errors.
Overall, the Cardinals defense limited Western Kentucky to a .223 (54-19-157) attack percentage, with Eliza McKnight leading the squad with 13 kills and a .545 (13-1-22) rate of success. Tayler Baron led the WKU defense with 18 digs.
The Ball State women's volleyball team continues play in the Tru by Hilton Beavercreek Invitational Friday with a 3 p.m. first serve versus Dayton.
"I'm very proud of our group for just staying the course," head coach Kelli Miller Phillips said. "No matter the score, we just kept plugging away, playing hard and good things started to happen. That was another great show of toughness from the whole group!"
Already down one set and trailing 4-1 in the second, the Cardinals (3-0) rattled off six straight points to gain some much-needed momentum. That was just one of several big point runs for Ball State over the final three frames, including 7-0 start in the fourth, as they handed the Hilltoppers (2-2) its second loss of the season.
Leading the way for the BSU offense against a WKU squad which received votes in the latest American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Top 25 Coaches Poll was junior outside Ava Smith with a career-high 19 kills. She also added 11 digs for her second double-double of the season.
Also coming up huge on the offensive front for the Cardinals were junior outside Audrey Geer and junior opposition Tiffany Snook with 15 and 10 kills, respectively. Geer's 15 kills and 15 digs, for her second double-double of the year, were season highs, as was Snook's .304 (10-3-23) attack percentage.
Overall, the Cardinals finished the night with a season-best .301 (55-14-136) hitting mark, led by a .444 (19-3-36) effort from Smith and a .400 (8-2-15) rate of success from fifth-year senior middle Madison Buckley.
"Our setters did a great job of spreading the offense, getting multiple everyone involved and making big time sets when we needed it," Phillips added.
Leading the offense was the setting duo of senior Lindsey Green and sophomore Reese Axness with 24 and 20 assists, respectively. Green would also tally 13 digs for her second double-double of the season, while Axness added a pair.
Rounding out Ball State's key contributors was junior libero Sophie Ledbetter who tied for match-high honors with 18 digs. The effort raised her career total to 969, leaving her 31 digs shy of becoming the 22nd player in program history to reach 1,000 career digs.
Another key in the victory for the Cardinals was limiting service miscues, while capitalizing on the Hilltoppers' errors. While WKU was able to serve up 11 aces, it also registered 15 service errors to help Ball State maintain its pressure down the stretch.
"WKU had some big-time servers that brought heat and our passers really had to battle all night," Phillips said. "I do believe our servers rose to the challenge though and kept the pressure on them consistently which was a big reason for our win tonight."
Conversely, BSU would serve up a season-high five aces, led by three from Geer, and commit just four service errors.
Overall, the Cardinals defense limited Western Kentucky to a .223 (54-19-157) attack percentage, with Eliza McKnight leading the squad with 13 kills and a .545 (13-1-22) rate of success. Tayler Baron led the WKU defense with 18 digs.
The Ball State women's volleyball team continues play in the Tru by Hilton Beavercreek Invitational Friday with a 3 p.m. first serve versus Dayton.
Players Mentioned
S
/ Women's Volleyball
OPP
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's Volleyball
DS/L
/ Women's Volleyball
OH/Opp
/ Women's Volleyball
MH
/ Women's VolleyballTeam Stats
WestKy
BSU
Kills
54
55
Errors
19
14
Attempts
157
136
Hitting %
.223
.301
Points
71.0
63.0
Assists
52
52
Aces
11
5
Blocks
6
3
Game Leaders
Kills
19
Aces
0
Blocks
0
Kills
15
Aces
3
Blocks
0
Kills
10
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
8
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Friday, September 04
Friday, September 04
Thursday, September 03
Thursday, August 27