The Ball State women's volleyball team travels to West Lafayette for the Purdue Boiler Box Challenge this weekend. The Cardinals will take on in-state foes Notre Dame and Purdue on Sept. 18, as well as South Dakota.
After winning the first two sets, the Mastodons changed their serving strategy and forced the match into five sets. The Cardinals held on, however, and won the match 3-2 against their rivals Sept. 16 at Worthen Arena.
The Ball State men's volleyball team is set to hold its walk-on tryouts this week, a process very familiar to assistant coach Kevin Furnish. Furnish was a walk-on at Ball State, where he graduated in 1991 after a solid career. Men's volleyball walk-ons aren't as prevalent now as they were during his time, but the Cardinals look for new players in tryouts every year.
Ball State women's volleyball coach Steve Shondell continues to see the bright side. Despite a 1-2 weekend at the Washington State University Cougar Challenge over the weekend, the Cardinals' offense played with more consistency. Shondell said it was some of the best volleyball he's seen from his team.
Mackenzie Kitchel's dad was a national champion basketball player at Indiana University. Her mom was a Division I diver at UNLV. It seemed she was destined to be a good athlete.
Following the loss to IUPUI on Sept. 2, the upcoming Lipscomb Tournament might've gotten even tougher for the Ball State women's volleyball team. Because the team is on the road, there isn't much time to adjust following its three-set loss. The Cardinals head into the Lipscomb Tournament Sept. 4 where they will see three undefeated teams.
After a 3-0 start to begin the season, the Ball State women's volleyball team suffered its first defeat of the season on Sept. 2 at IUPUI. The Cardinals had four straight chances to close out the first set, but couldn't capitalize and fell 29-27. The Jaguars carried the momentum into a sweep victory.
After guiding the Ball State women's volleyball to a 3-0 start, senior Alex Fuelling has been named the Mid-American Conference West Division Offensive Player of the Week.
When the season began, Sabrina Mangapora and Mackenzie Kitchel were expected to be key performers for the Ball State women's volleyball team. Before the first tournament of the year, however, both players went down with unspecified injuries.
Those six seniors showed their leadership and defensive abilities in the first weekend of the season, leading the Cardinals to a 3-0 record and a championship in the Active Ankle Challenge.
The Ball State women's volleyball team won three straight sets to defeat New Mexico 3-2 on Aug. 29 and finished the Active Ankle Challenge with a 3-0 record.
Belmont came back to defeat the Cardinals in the third set 25-23, however. The Bruins won the fourth set as well, but Ball State ultimately won the match in a five-set thriller.
The Ball State women's volleyball team was selected to finish third in the Mid-American West Conference Division this season, as voted on by the league's 12 head coaches.
The Cardinals will host the Active Ankle Challenge Aug. 28-29 at the new-look Worthen Arena. Ball State will face off against Albany, Belmont and New Mexico to begin the season.
Athletic director Mark Sandy said the video board will add "flavor" to contests through fan experience and keep facilities up to date with other Mid-American Conference schools. But the biggest improvement may come in recruiting.
But this year's team will feature six players in their final campaign.
The Ball State women's volleyball team added two more players to its recruiting class with commitments from Carly Cappello and Lauren Schreiner.
The Cardinals will take on the Buckeyes of Ohio State, the No. 3 seed in the MIVA Tournament. In two meetings this season, both teams swept the match on their home floor.
Former Ball State men's volleyball setter Graham McIlvaine has earned a spot on the 25-man World League Team USA preliminary roster.
The Ball State Men's Volleyball is the first of nine Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association teams to finish their regular season, as the young Cardinals now prepare for the postseason. After defeating McKendree in the final regular season game, the Cardinals enter post season with a 13-15 overall record and currently sit in sixth place in the MIVA with a 6-10 record. The final placement for the Cardinals is uncertain and they will not know who they are playing in the conference tournament until the remainder of the conference games conclude this weekend.
