Ball State Women’s Volleyball (14-6, 6-2) handed Mid-American Conference (MAC) opponent Northern Illinois (13-6, 6-3) their second straight loss, closing the Huskies out in three sets.
“We had two really good back-to-back performances so I think that’s definitely gonna give us confidence going into a tough game next week, but certainly you can see that the things we’re going over in practice are starting to translate over into the game,” head coach Kelli Miller Phillips said.
Ball State is now tied for the number one spot in the MAC West Division after winning their last six conference games.
Fourth-year outside hitter Natalie Risi led the way for the Cardinals on offense with 11 kills accompanied by third-year middle blocker Lauren Gilliland, who asserted herself on both sides of the net, adding six kills and nine total blocks.
“I think we’ve been putting a ton of emphasis on that [blocking] and Lauren and Mitchem both had probably two or three (blocks) right out of the gate that really set the tone for us,” Phillips said.
Behind season-high blocking performances from both Gilliland and fourth-year opposite Natalie Mitchem (seven total blocks), the Cardinals were able to hold Northern Illinois to 13 and 17 points respectively in the first two sets. Most importantly, their blocking presence was able to quell a late comeback attempt from the Huskies in the third set which allowed the Cardinals to secure a three-point win (25-22).
“I think we’ve been working on staying disciplined at the net and translating what we do in practice to the game,” Gilliland said. “I think it’s helped us become very successful.”
Ball State heads to Toledo, Ohio next Wednesday for its final matchup of a three-game road trip against Toledo at 6 p.m.
Contact Nick Shelton with comments at nicholas.shelton@bsu.edu or on Twitter @NickS9954.
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