After a much closer match the evening before, Ball State Women’s Volleyball (10-6, 2-2) was not looking for more than three sets as it swept (25-17, 25-19, 25-16) Mid-American Conference (MAC) opponent Eastern Michigan (1-15, 0-4) and sealed back-to-back home wins in the second week of conference play.
Ball State jumped out to a lead in the first set thanks to five kills from fourth-year outside hitter Natalie Risi. On the defensive side of the ball, Risi added a block and two digs.
Fourth-year middle blocker Marie Plitt added three kills of her own in set one and third-year middle blocker Lauren Gilliland started out Saturday with two kills.
Nine of the Cardinals’ 25 points in set one came in the form of errors on Eastern Michigan.
A balanced attack in set two helped put Ball State up two sets on Eastern Michigan. Risi and Plitt each tallied three kills. Third-year outside hitter Cait Snyder had two kills in the second set to bring her total up to three.
The defense was on display for the Cardinals in the second set with a block from Snyder, and two block assists.
At the beginning of the set, a combine block assist came from the duo of Gilliland and fourth-year opposite Natalie Mitchem. Another block assist came later in the set from Plitt and first-year opposite Madison Buckley.
“10 blocks in three sets is a huge improvement for us [compared to other matches],” head coach Kelli Miller Phillips said. “Our blocking presence forced them into a few more errors than what they had the previous night.”
Buckley’s play continued into the third and final set, where she smashed three kills and three block assists.
“We just have a lot of trust in each other and I know if I do my job then my teammates will do their job as well and that is just what we did,” Buckley said. “That is what we have been preaching all week as well after a few not-so-great weekends this is exactly what we needed.”
Gilliland also had three kills in the last set, but Risi led the team in the final stretch on offense with four kills en route to a team-high 12 kills.
These two wins over Eastern Michigan put to bed a five-match losing streak for the Cardinals over the last two weeks.
“We have been working really hard and these girls have been putting in all the effort and sometimes it just takes a match like this to realize that all the work you put in has paid off,” Miller Phillips said.
Ball State faces Akron (4-12, 1-4 MAC) next in a home tilt at Worthen Arena Oct. 7 at 6 p.m.
Contact Corbin Hubert with comments at cchubert@bsu.edu or on Twitter @corbin_hubert_
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