Women's Volleyball

Eagles, Cardinals, and Broncos Reverse Sweep to Friday Night Victories!

Friday Volleyball results
Akron 3, Northern Illinois 2
Ball State 3, Ohio 2
Western Michigan 3, Bowling Green 2
Eastern Michigan 3, Buffalo 2
Central Michigan 3, Kent State 0
Miami 3, Toledo 2
 
Recaps courtesy of Athletic Communications Departments

Akron 3, Northern Illinois 2 | Box Score
AKRON, Ohio - Gabby Brissett notched 15 kills with a .519 attack percentage while Delaney Gash notched 21 kills to help propel the Akron volleyball team to a five-set win (25-20, 19-25, 25-18, 14-25, 15-9) over the Northern Illinois Huskies Friday at James A Rhodes Arena.

The Zips attack was paced by Gash, who finished with 21 kills, her sixth 20+ kill performance of the season, and by Brissett, who tied her career-high of 15 kills while hitting .519. Akron got 26 digs from Vanessa Del Real, which was three off of her career-high, along with five blocks from Chidera Ozoh to lead them defensively. Martina Villani supplied 51 assists against the Huskies, her sixth 50+ assist performance of the season. Jaryn Morgan notched a career-high three aces in the win as well.

The win moved the Zips' record to 10-11 overall and 3-7 in MAC play.

Game Notes

» Brissett was efficient in attacking situations in the match, accumulating 15 kills while hitting .519.
» Morgan had a team-high and career-high three aces in the win.
» Akron never trailed on the way to winning the first set 25-20.
» Akron never trailed on the way to winning the fifth set 15-9.
» Gash had a match-high 21 kills for Akron.
» Akron got a team-high 26 digs from Del Real.
» Akron attackers were helped by a match-high 51 assists from Villani.

What's Next?
The Zips and Huskies conclude the series at James A. Rhodes Arena on Saturday, October 25 for a 4 p.m. start.


Ball State 3, Ohio 2 | Box Score
MUNCIE, Ind. - - Guided by a surge from its middles, the Ball State women's volleyball team rallied from two sets down to stay undefeated in Mid-American Conference play with a 3-2 (12-25, 19-25, 25-16, 25-20, 15-9) victory over Ohio Friday night in Worthen Arena.

After a rough opening two sets, the Cardinals (14-8; 10-0 MAC) found its groove in the third frame and never looked back, picking up its 10th consecutive win and second reverse sweep of the season. The other being a 3-2 victory over Colgate on Sept. 5.

Leading the charge were junior middles Camryn Wise and Gwen Crull who smashed 10 of BSU's 11 kills in a dominating third-set victory. Wise hit a blistering .714 (6-1-7) in the frame on her way to a match-high 14 kills and .478 (14-3-23) rate of success. Crull hit .571 (4-0-7) and finished the night with 11 kills and a .476 (11-1-21) attack percentage.

Wise also came up huge at the net in the rally, collecting five of her match-high seven total blocks over the final three sets versus the Bobcats (7-15; 5-5 MAC).

Overall, four different Cardinals reached double-digit kills with sophomore outside Carson Tyler smashing 11 and graduate outside Noelle VanOort chipping in 10. Tyler also collected eight digs and a match-high three service aces. With her 10 kills, VanOort upped her collegiate total to 1,993, including 269 kills for the Cardinals and 1,724 over her four-year career at Indiana Tech.

While Ohio was able to limit the Ball State attack to a lowest hitting mark in a league match this season, at .199 (51-21-151), the Cardinals were able to out-serve the Bobcats which entered the night ranked 51st nationally in aces per set. Ball State served up nine total aces and surrendered just six.

Four of Ohio's aces came in the opening two sets, as the Cardinals settled into serve receive over the final three frames to help pull out the victory. BSU also logged just two service errors over the final two frames, after committing five during the first two.

In the backcourt, sophomore libero Sophie Ledbetter tied for match-high honors with 18 digs, while junior setter Lindsey Green added 11 to go along with her 33 assists for her fifth double-double of the season. Freshman setter Reese Axness added 13 assists and five digs.

For the Bobcats, Bailey Blair tied for match-high honors with 14 kills, while Torre Kildow chipped in 12. Ohio's offense connected for a .231 (58-22-156) rate of success for the night, with BSU limiting it to a .129 (28-16-93) mark over the final three sets. OU's Kendall Hickey tied for match-high honors with 18 digs, while Emily Waddell earned a team-high five total blocks.

Ball State and Ohio will meet again Saturday at 4 p.m. for Chirp or Treat inside Worthen Arena.


Western Michigan 3, Bowling Green 2 | Box Score
KALAMAZOO, Mich. – After dropping the first two sets on Friday night, the Western Michigan volleyball team came all the way back to earn a reverse sweep over Bowling Green (23-25, 19-25, 25-17, 25-17, 15-6).  
 
FINAL SCORE: Western Michigan 3, Bowling Green 2
LOCATION: University Arena (Kalamazoo, Mich.)
RECORDS: Western Michigan (10-13, 7-3 MAC) | Bowling Green (12-10, 6-4 MAC)
 
The Western Michigan rally was keyed by its defense and its serving. The Brown and Gold collected a season-high 16 blocks, with 13 of them coming in the final three frames. Amanda Glanton led the charge up front with eight blocks, while Mary Clare Brusek added six and Mia Jurkovic had five.
 
At the service line, WMU notched eight of its season-high 12 aces over the final three sets, including six in the third set alone. Reeghan Boyer and Carley Piercefield served up four aces apiece, with Maddie Kmetz notching three. Piercefield and Kmetz's ace numbers both established new career highs.
 
Leah Richmond just missed out on a double-double, tallying 45 assists and collecting nine digs. Brusek was the chief beneficiary of Richmond's setting, as she put down a team-leading 15 kills. Boyer (17), Piercefield (11) and Elana Erickson (10) all posted double-digit digs for the Broncos. 
 
The Broncos and Falcons meet again at University Arena on Saturday at 4 pm. 


Eastern Michigan 3, Buffalo 2 | Box Score
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – Senior outside hitter Bri Struck put together a career-best 16-kill performance to power the Eastern Michigan University volleyball team to a reverse sweep victory against the University at Buffalo Friday, Oct. 24, at the George Gervin GameAbove Center.
 
Struck, who had just 13 career kills entering the match, made just her second career start while hitting a robust .351 to lead Eastern's attack.
 
Junior outside hitter Ava Siefke posted her ninth double-double of the season behind a 12-kill, 18-dig showing. Her 18 digs led the team while senior defensive specialist Ella Grasson added 11 digs.
 
Sophomore middle blocker Wrigley Takats also had a standout effort, recording a career-high 10 blocks.
 
Eastern also received an 11-kill, six-block performance from sophomore middle hitter Hatteras Welker and a 10-kill, five-dig, and five-block showing from sophomore outside hitter Anna Guard.

Match Notes
» Eastern's record improved to 11-13 (3-8 MAC) while Buffalo's shifted to 7-13 (4-7 MAC).
» The reverse sweep marks Eastern's second of the season with the other coming against UMKC, Aug. 30.
» Eastern outhit Buffalo, .182-.129, improving to 11-0 on the season when outhitting its foe. EMU is 25-4 when doing so in the Kevin Foeman era.
» EMU held a 17.0-14.0 advantage in blocks, improving to 8-2 when tallying more blocks than its opponent this season.
» The Eagles' 17.0 total blocks match the team's season high, set against Valparaiso, Sept. 5. The 17 blocks equal the highest mark in one match among MAC teams this season. Eastern is one of 19 schools in the nation, and the only school in the MAC, to have multiple matches with at least 17 blocks this season.
» Bri Struck's 16 kills are 13 more than her previous career high of three, set in her first match as an Eagle, Aug. 30, 2024, against SIUE. Struck also recorded her first career block, tallying five total blocks for the match. Additionally, Struck equaled her career high of three digs, set against Akron, Nov. 8, 2024.
» Ava Siefke's 18 digs are her 11th match with double-figure digs this season and her 30th time doing so in her career. Her 12 kills mark her 19th match reaching 10 kills this season and 29th time for her career.
» Freshman setter Kaylin Schroeder made just her second appearance of the season, setting career highs in assists (13), kills (2), and digs (2).
» Anna Guard's five total blocks are a career high.
» Ella Voorhees led the team in assists with 19, making it her fifth match securing over 10 assists this season.
» Hatteras Welker added one service ace, marking her sixth-straight match with at least one ace. Welker has at least one ace in 19-of-23 matches this season. Welker's 19 matches with at least one ace are tied for the second-highest mark in the nation, are the most in the MAC, and are the most of any middle in the country.
 
Historical Notes
» The match marked the 36th between the Eagles and Bulls. Overall, Eastern holds a 23-12 mark when facing Buffalo and an 11-6 clip when facing it in Ypsilanti.
 
Up Next
Eastern hosts Central Michigan University on Tuesday, Oct. 28, 6 p.m. at the George Gervin GameAbove Center. Admission is free and the game can be streamed live on ESPN+. 
 

Central Michigan 3, Kent State 0 | Box Score
KENT, Ohio –   The Central Michigan Volleyball team logged their fifth straight victory in a 3-0 showing over Kent State. The Chippewas stand at 6-5 in Mid-American Conference play and move to 9-14 overall. The Golden Flashes enter the weekend at 8-14 and 3-8 in the conference.

Central Michigan took the first and third sets 25-18, and the second set 25-19.

Grace Thomas and Taylor Cripe each logged 11 kills, Natalia Rejment found herself with 10.

The Chippewas came out to a hot start, after conceding the first point the Chippewas went on an 8-1 run, forcing a timeout from the Golden Flashes' coaching staff.

Muell ended the night with 32 assists coming from 73 attempts.

Brooklyn Conner and Rejement led the Chippewas in blocks, logging five and four, respectively.

Rejement led CMU with nine digs, followed closely by Izzy Swiercz and Olin, each with eight.

The Chippewas will next head to Ypsilanti for a mid-week match against Eastern Michigan – an opponent CMU has beaten in ten consecutive matches. The match is slated for Tuesday, October 28th at 6 p.m.


Miami 3, Toledo 2 | Box Score
TOLEDO, Ohio — The Miami University volleyball team (11-11, 5-5 MAC) won a five-set match (27-25, 19-25, 25-23, 22-25, 15-11) against Toledo (16-6, 7-3 MAC) on Friday night at Savage Arena. Offensively, Molly Creech (19), Chelsea Williams (17) and Lindy Radaszewski (13) led the RedHawks in kills, while Hayden Hicks dished out 29 assists. Defensively, Gentry Warrick put down seven blocks, and Anna McClure added 17 digs.

NOTES:

  • Creech's 19 kills (most of her career) and Warrick's seven blocks led all players.
  • Lindsay Kahren and Utley each led the RedHawks with two service aces.

UP NEXT:
The RedHawks return to the court at Toledo on Saturday, Oct. 25 at 4 p.m.