MAC Volleyball Tournament Begins Tonight with First Round Matches
MAC Volleyball Championship Central
MAC Volleyball Tournament Bracket
MAC Volleyball Tournament First Round Schedule (DeKalb, Illinois)
No. 5 Ball State vs. No. 8 Western Michigan, 6:00/5:00 PM EST/CT
No. 6 Toledo vs. No. 7 Kent State, 8:30/7:30 PM EST/CT
No. 5 Ball State (13-17, 9-7 MAC) vs. No. 8 Western Michigan (11-18, 6-10 MAC)
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Ball State - The Ball State women's volleyball team opens the 2016 Mid-American Conference Tournament as the No. 5 seed and will play No. 8 seed Western Michigan in Thursday's 6 p.m. (ET) / 5 p.m. (CT) first-round match at Victor E. Court in DeKalb, Ill. Ball State will be making its 26th consecutive appearance in the Mid-American Conference Tournament this season, and its 28th overall trip to the league's premier event. Ball State is 30-21 (.588) all-time in MAC Tournament matches, including a 5-1 record in first round matches, a 10-8 mark in quarterfinal matches, 9-9 ledger in semifinal matches and 6-3 record in championship matches.
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Western Michigan – Western Michigan heads to Northern Illinois for the Mid-American Conference Tournament on Thursday. The Broncos earned the No. 8 seed and will take on fifth-seeded Ball State at 6 p.m. Western Michigan leads the all-time series 45-39 but the Broncos have dropped both matches against the Cardinals this season, 3-2 in Kalamazoo and 3-1 in Muncie, Ind. WMU does hold a 6-3 advantage over BSU in the MAC Tournament at neutral sites. The last time the two teams met in the MAC Tournament was on Nov. 22, 2013 and the Broncos took the match 3-1.
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No. 6 Toledo (15-13, 8-8 MAC) vs. No. 7 Kent State (15-14, 8-8 MAC)
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Toledo – Toledo (15-13, 8-8 MAC) will open postseason play this weekend when it heads to the 2016 Mid-American Conference Championship hosted by regular-season co-champion Northern Illinois in DeKalb, IL. The Rockets have earned the No. 6 seed and will open play at the NIU Victor E. Court on Thursday, Nov. 17 at 7:30 p.m. CT with a first-round matchup against No. 7 seed Kent State (15-14, 8-8 MAC). Toledo is playing in the MAC Championship for the 14th time in program history. UT's last appearance was in 2013 when the No. 2 Rockets lost to Eastern Michigan in five sets in the quarterfinals. The Rockets hold a 28-25 advantage over the Golden Flashes after a come-from-behind 3-2 victory this season.
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Kent State – Kent State (15-14, 8-8 MAC) went 1-1 to end the conference season and earn its sixth consecutive weekend split. The Golden Flashes dropped a hard-fought match to Ohio, 3-1 (24-26, 14-25, 25-20, 27-29), in their home finale on Thursday and then bounced back from failing to hold onto a 7-point lead late in the opening set to beat Eastern Michigan, 3-1 (23-25, 25-21, 25-16, 25-21), on the road Saturday. Junior Kelsey Bittinger (29 kills), junior Heather Younkin (28 kills) and sophomore Lexi Mantas (27 kills) provided Kent State with a balanced attack at the pin positions, while junior Amber Gerdeman (17 kills, .289 hitting percentage) provided a steady option in the middle. The Flashes were terrific defensively with averages of 21.88 digs and 2.50 blocks per set. Junior Challen Geraghty led the floor defense with 53 digs (6.62/set) with senior Katarina Kojic (37 digs) and Bittinger (34 digs) also contributing better than 4.00 digs per set. Gerdeman led the way with 12 total blocks and Younkin added 8 blocks. Kent State earned the No. 7 seed in the 2016 MAC Volleyball Championship and opens Thursday with a first round matchup against Toledo.
