In their second-consecutive non-conference weekend tournament, the Ball State women's volleyball team notched its first and second wins of the season this weekend. With victories over Texas Tech on Friday and host team UNLV on Sunday, the Cardinals moved to 2-4 on the year.
The Cardinals only loss on the weekend came at the hands of eventual UNLV Gameworks Classic champion Cal-Berkeley on Saturday.
Freshman outside attacker Sarah Obras led Ball State to its first win of the season in the Cardinals' first match of the tournament against the Red Raiders of Texas Tech. Obras' 20 kills were enough for the Cardinals to come out on top in a hard-fought, five-game match 30-27, 9-30, 30-24, 25-30, 15-11.
"Sarah came through big for us tonight. She was able to overcome a lack of support from the middle and an opposing defense that was keying on her. Her efforts tonight played a large part in our victory," head coach Randy Litchfield said.
Obras was not alone on offense. Seniors Katie Butts and Nikki Allen had 13 and five kills each respectively.
| 2002 Gameworks/UNLV Classic All-Tournament Team |
| Mia Jerkov - California Makille Leffall - California Leah Young - California Patricia Assuncao - UNLV Sarah Obras - Ball State Melissa McGehee - Texas Tech |
"Our offense kept us alive tonight," Litchfield said. "They preformed with a lot of guts and allowed us to overcome our defensive struggles."
The Cardinals were unable to carry their momentum from their first win over to Saturday when they faced undefeated Cal-Berkeley.
Once again, Obras, who notched 12 kills against the Golden Bears, paced the offensive attack. Butts contributed 7 kills for the Cardinals, who as a team tallied 16 block assists.
Ball State got back on track Sunday with a 3-1 win over UNLV in its final match of the weekend tournament. For the third-consecutive match, Obras led the Cardinal attack as she recorded 18 kills, 10 digs and five blocks for the match. Katie Butts scored 17 kills and had a team-high .464 (17-4-28) hitting percentage. Sophomore libero Stephanie Keller led the Ball State defense with a match-high 16 digs against the Rebels.
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