The Ball State University women's volleyball team found its groove Friday night at Worthen Arena against IPFW in its first home match of the season and as host of the Active Ankle Challenge.
The Cardinals (1-3) rolled by the Mastadons (3-3) behind a stout front line attack and solid defensive effort in the back row en route to a 26-24, 25-18, 25-19 win.
"I can't tell you how proud I am of this effort," coach Dave Boos said. "I'm very pleased with the way we performed."
Leading the charge for Ball State were Alisha Green, 17 kills, Charde' Phillips, 16 kills, and Elaina Kakatolis, nine kills and no attack errors.
"Everyone played so confident and did some amazing things," Boos said. "Alisha, Charde' and Elaina are going to get the attention, but Christie, Kaylee, and Karin were big factors."
IPFW took the early advantage, but Ball State recovered quickly to take a 16-13 lead in the first set. The Mastodons returned the favor, going on a run to tie the match at 23.
Tied at 23 Breivogel sent a power tip over the net, but wide, giving IPFW a set point. Green and Phillips followed that up with a pair of kills to wrestle the set away from the Mastodons.
"It was really intense down the stretch in the first set. Those are the moments that make volleyball. You live for those moments and for ending it," Green said. "No one was really worried in our huddle. We just felt there was no sense of keep going and that we were going to terminate it."
With the second set tied at 10 Ball State finished the set on a 15-8 run to take a two-game lead. "We weren't feeling any pressure at all. We just tried to go out, have fun, be competitive and do what we do," Phillips said. "It's great knowing people are here to cheer us on and have that support."
Ball State jumped out to a 8-3 lead in the third set. The Mastadons rallied and took a two point advantage 13-11 part-way through the set, but then the Cardinals found their groove.
"Just being confident was my focus," Green said. "It feels great to see all the hard work we put in pay off."
Sophomore Jennifer Boyd got in the act by posting consecutive service aces extending the Cardinals' run.
"I think we gelled as well as we possibly could. This lineup was one we worked on all week in practice," Boos said. "I couldn't be more pleased. I would have taken a loss [Friday] because of how confidently the team played. It was that confidence that got us through the first set-something we would have struggled with last season." Sophomore Kaylee Schembra put the match away with an emphatic service ace. She also contributed eight digs. McGinnis finished the match with 35 assists and 15 digs for a double-double.
Mayara Schlindwein led IPFW offensively with 11 kills on 34 swings while Tessa McGill notched 12 digs defensively.
Ball State returns to the court Saturday at 12:30 p.m. against SIU-Edwardsville (0-5).
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