Maybe Ball State was cursed. Something about Western Michigan always brings the best or worst out of the Cardinals, usually the latter.
The curse was broken Friday night at Worthen Arena. Ball State (19-4, 9-2) rallied to beat Western Michigan (18-7, 8-3) in a five-set thriller (25-22, 23-25, 16-25, 25-22, 15-13).
"This was the last time the seniors could play this team and have a shot at beating them, We wanted to beat them," senior libero Alyssa Rio said. "This is my favorite game that I've played here and the most important win in college for me."
The win is Ball State's first against Western Michigan since October 2006. It snapped a seven-match losing streak to the Broncos.
Once again Ball State showed its best effort, with hustle plays keeping rallies alive. Junior middle blockers Kelsey Brandl and Jennifer Boyd led the attack.
Brandl led all offensive players with 19 kills, while Boyd posted a season-high 16. Freshman outside hitters Kylee Baker and Whitney Heeres finished with 18 and 17 kills respectively.
Rio had a career-high 44 digs, the fourth-highest single game total in program history.
"I wanted to take every ball," Rio said. "With how bad I wanted to beat this team, every ball I could get to was mine. Nothing was hitting the floor."
Ball State's performance wasn't perfect. The third set featured a frustrating flashback to the last several years when Western Michigan often swept Ball State.
Everything that could go wrong did.
The Broncos made plays that ordinarily wouldn't be made. Defenders covered the floor from corner to corner, continuing rallies. Diving digs turned into kills.
"It was really frustrating," Baker said. "Some calls didn't go our way. The third set really tested the character of this team. We did a great job of responding to it and putting it behind us."
Ball State responded.
The offense recorded kills when it absolutely had to have it. The defense was stout when it had to be.
The coaching staff was loud, expressive and encouraging when the team needed it most. The win was nothing short of an all-out effort.
"Western Michigan is such a good defensive team," Ball State coach Steve Shondell said. "They really make you work for it. When they made their run to tie the match at 13, it was almost Buffalo all over again.
"What a great comeback for this team."
With the fifth set tied at 13 and everything on the line Ball State found a way to put the ball away and beat Western Michigan.
"It's like living a dream," Baker said. "I'm just truly honored to be a part of this team. We're so passionate and have so much fight — especially Rio, who has worked her tail off for three years to get this."
Ball State will play Northern Illinois tonight at 7. The Huskies were upset by Toledo on Friday, dropping to a first-place tie with Ball State at 9-2 in the MAC.
The winner will have sole possession of first place in the conference. Even after the "most important win" of her career, Rio was already looking ahead to Northern Illinois.
"This is a win we can take pride in," Rio said. "We have to build off this and keep going."
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