Active Ankle Tournament results
Albany vs. Ball State - 3-1 (W)
Belmont vs. Ball State - 3-2 (W)
New Mexico vs. Ball State - 3-2 (W)
"Five-game matches seem to be our favorite thing," senior Kelly Hopkins said. "We've played many of them before and will play many in the future, so we were ready and knew what to expect."
New Mexico entered the match as a top 50 volleyball team, and flexed their muscles early by winning the first two sets. The first set was 25-18 and the second set was 25-16.
Ball State, coming off a five-game victory against Belmont on Aug. 28, couldn't match the intensity of its opponent.
"The ball just refused to go our way," head coach Steve Shondell said. "And we had some unlucky bounces that really took us out of the first two games."
The Cardinals refused to lie down in the third set, as they recorded a 25-20 victory.
New Mexico took a 14-11 lead midway through the fourth set, but Ball State fought back to even the set at 20-20. With the crowd behind them, the Cardinals evened the match with a 29-27 overtime
"It's so nice having the crowd and band here." Shondell said. "It really helps energize the players."
Ball State fell behind 8-6 in the fifth set. New Mexico was unable to build a bigger lead, however, and the Cardinals took a commanding 13-9 lead behind strong defense and blocking.
The Lobos made it 14-13 before senior Alex Fuelling's floater sealed the come-from-behind victory.
Fuelling was named the Most Valuable Performer of the Active Ankle Challenge. She hit the game-winner in each match of the tournament.
"It was such an amazing shot by Alex," Shondell said. "She has been playing like a senior this weekend and showed it once again at the end."
She finished the final match with 17 kills and 15 digs. Hopkins led the Cardinals with 21 kills against the Lobos, while senior Kati Vasalakis led defensively with 24 digs.
With the win, Ball State has a 3-0 record for the first time in four years.
The Cardinals will hit the road to take on IUPUI on Sept. 2 at 7 p.m.
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