Ball State appeared to have a championship hangover at the beginning of the night against Akron. The Cardinals dropped the first set 25-21 while struggling in the passing game.
The struggles in the passing game decreased in the second set as Ball State dominated Akron 25-19. One adjustment made by Steve Shondell in the second set was replacing senior Charde' Phillips with freshman Mindy Marx in the middle.
Marx didn't disappoint. She recorded two kills, a solo block and two block assists.
Jennifer Boyd leads Ball State with eight kills on 11 swings for a .727 hitting percentage. The .727 rate of success is tied for the 11th-best performance for an attacker with 10 to 14 attacks.
Senior libero Alyssa Rio has 14 digs.