Chaos, confusion and worst case scenario.
Not exactly the words any coach wants to use in the same sentence, but that's what coach Dave Boos and the Ball State University women's volleyball team lived over the weekend.
Having traveled to West Lafayette to appear in the Premier Mortar Board Tournament, expectations were high for the Cardinals. Those hopes lived for about one set.
After No. 19 Purdue University took a 25-19 set one win, chaos reigned supreme for Ball State. First junior libero and top ball handler Alyssa Rio went down with a pulled hamstring. She will be evaluated upon arrival to campus by team doctors. Then junior ball handler Hannah Sullivan left due to an old back injury flaring up.
Just like that, the top two ball handlers were gone in the first match of the season.
"Well, this was absolutely our worst case scenario. We were prepared enough to go without one of our top ball handlers, but not both," Boos said. "We've had to make radical changes to our lineup as a result."
In the end, the Boliermakers swept the Cardinals 25-19, 25-18, 25-17 Friday night.
"We prepare for different lineups and changes in practice," Boos said. "It's hard to overcome losses like that immediately."
Less than 24 hours later, BSU returned to the court to face the University of Dayton. Living up to their moniker, the Flyers flew out to leads early in each of the three sets, forcing the Cardinals to play from behind. On several occasions, BSU scrapped and clawed back into the match, but it wasn't enough. Dayton would put together another run to pull away for a 25-17, 25-16, 25-14 sweep.
The final match of the weekend pitted BSU against Coastal Carolina University. Reversing the trend from Dayton, the Cardinals jumped on top of Coastal Carolina four times early in the going - the first of which helped contribute to the first set victory of the season, 25-20. From there, Coastal Carolina took the next three sets 27-25, 25-21 and 25-20, despite Ball State repeatedly fighting off set points.
One of the radical changes seen starting in the first set was the reassignment of sophomore setter Brittany McGinnis. McGinnis was moved to left outside hitter where she produced a double-double, 11 kills and 16 digs.
"I was a little nervous at first, but then I focused on what I needed to do," McGinnis said. "I had played the position before and everyone helped me transition back into it. It was fun."
The double-double performance was not overlooked as McGinnis was named to the All-Tournament Team.
"Brittany was very impressive," Boos said. "She had never taken a pass drill in her time at Ball State and she went out there and handled it beautifully. To be honest, they [Coastal Carolina] were avoiding serving to her by the end of the match and that's saying something."
McGinnis wasn't the only one with a good effort. Senior Julie Breivogel tallied a career high 22 kills and crossed the 1,000 kill mark for her career at Ball State."It's indescribable knowing what I've been able to contribute to the program. It's an awesome feeling and I'm grateful that I've had the opportunity to do so," Breivogel said. "But I was focused on playing for the team. We had so many changes with the injuries that I was just trying to go out and do my part for the team so we could win."
The chaotic and nightmarish beginning to the season ended with three losses for the Cardinals. It's not something they are dwelling on however.
"We leave here feeling better considering how we performed against Coastal Carolina in our worst case scenario," Boos said. "We'll have a lot of work ahead of us this week to get more comfortable with the personnel on the floor with the radical changes we've made. We'll find the right combination."
The Cardinals return to action Friday against Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne at 7:30 p.m. in the Active Ankle Challenge hosted in the Worthen Arena.
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