Coming into Sunday's match with Ball State, the reigning Mid-American Conference champions, the UB volleyball team (8-13, 2-5 MAC) was prepared to make a statement and move up the ladder in the ever-so-competitive conference after dropping a match to Akron on Friday night.
However, Ball State would not let that happen, as the Bulls extended their losing streak to two matches after playing the Cardinals Sunday afternoon in Alumni Arena. The game ended in a 3-0 match, with a score of 30-23, 30-27, 30-22.
The Bulls began strong in the first match against Ball State, but slowly lost their speed as the game continued.
"This is the strongest we came out since pre-conference," said head UB volleyball coach, Sally Kus. "Ball State is leading their conference in the West division, and I feel that we played right with them."
Molly Schrantz tried to keep the spirit of her team alive on the court, as she led the Bulls with 15 defensive digs. Lindsay Matikosh compiled 12 digs, while Amy Brown and Nikki Morzenti had 11 digs apiece.
Alexis Bouie had a team high in blocks, with seven, and Katie Weekley had five blocks. Matikosh brought in two blocks during the game, as well.
"We made a few small mistakes on defense with the things we were working on all year," continued Kus. "When we get down, the girls get quiet on the court, and our communication breaks a little."
"Every error that we made, definitely could have been fixed," said UB co-captain, Lindsay Matikosh. "There were some balls that our team could have played, but just didn't."
Ball State put in a great defensive game against Buffalo as sophomore Sara Obras carried her team with 22 digs, and junior Stephanie Keller chipped in 14 digs. Ball State is now 5-3 in the MAC and 10-10 overall.
During Friday night's game against Akron in Ohio, the Bulls were defeated in a match 3-0, by scores of 30-13, 30-23 and 30-23.
Even though the Bulls did not play well against Akron, the team still had a few key plays.
Weekley made six kills and two blocks throughout the game, while teammate Alexis Bouie led the Bulls with five blocks. Schrantz and Morzenti both ended the game with two blocks each.
"We didn't come out fired up," said Kus. "Akron played extremely well, and we played very average.
"We didn't start playing well until the third game," continued Kus.
The Bulls will continue their MAC season, when they play at 7 p.m. on Friday in Alumni Arena against Marshall.
