In a season of ups and downs Ball State couldn't afford to come ill-prepared against the Mid-American Conference's best competition.
But that is all junior libero Catie Fredrich said Ball State did. In the three-set loss (25-17, 25-22, 25-11) to Western Michigan.
"We didn't come to execute," she said. "We weren't prepared."
It wasn't the loss that was so disappointing for the Cardinals. It was how poorly Ball State played just three games from the MAC Tournament.
"It's disappointing when we show up on the floor and play like we did," freshman outside hitter/setter Jenna Spadafora said.
The Cardinals struggled with inconsistent passing and Fredrich said it was a cause of the team's below .100 attack percentage.
Leadership became a struggle on the court for the Cardinals as the Broncos shut down its two best attackers.
“Kara [Bates] is our go-to player and they shut her down,” Spadafora said.
The Broncos shut the senior outside hitter out of plays, which created significant problems for the Cardinals.
“We couldn’t put the ball away,” coach Steve Shondell said.
Western Michigan employed a double block early in the match against against senior middle hitter Lisa Scott. With both of the first options schemed against, Ball State needed third and fourth options to assert themselves.
The team losing junior opposite hitter Lauren Grant for the rest of the season to injury only hindered them against Western Michigan and their tight play at the net.
"The biggest problem was Western's defense," Shondell said. "They played incredible. Every match is different and this was their night.”
The Cardinals rotated multiple players into the lineup to go against the Broncos offense. Senior defensive specialists Claire Farkas and Lauren Schlaker along with freshman Kati Vasalakis each saw time in the back row.
"You learn a lot more from your losses than you do from your wins because you take it to heart a little bit more, Shondell said. What you have to take from this match is how tough you have to be mentally.”
The team hopes to face Western Michigan again in the MAC Tournament. Though, next time it hopes to play much better, Shondell said.
"We are going to have to come together and play as a team and learn from what happened,” Fredrich said.
Ball State will take on Northern Illinois on Sunday in Worthen Arena.
