MUNCIE, IN – The Northern Illinois University volleyball team lost in straight sets for the second straight match Saturday afternoon, falling 3-0 (14-25, 14-25, 23-25) to the Ball State Cardinals at Worthen Arena.
 
"We are looking to play at a level that puts us in contention to compete in the MAC Tournament, and win a MAC championship," said head coach Ray Gooden. "We saw a good third set from our group and were a play or two away from going four. It's good to see teams that are playing at a higher level. That's where we would like to get to and we're getting closer to it."
 
Ball State (17-3, 7-1 MAC) came out firing in set one, hitting .351 to the Huskies' .175 in a 25-14 win. The Cardinals broke a 7-7 tie with a 4-0 run bookended by kills from Lauren Gilliland and Natalie Mitchem to take an 11-7 lead. The lead grew to seven on another 4-0 run capped by a Megan Wielonski kill that made the score 15-8. NIU only got as close as six points the rest of the way. The Huskies weathered a 4-0 start to the second set and got within one at 8-7 on a block by Katie Jablonski (Elburn, Ill./New Hampshire) and Charli Atiemo (Milford, Mich./Farmington Hills Mercy). Ball State rallied with seven straight points to take a 17-9 lead. The Cardinals hit .324 in the set to win it 25-14 and go up 2-0 in the match.
 
NIU (9-10, 3-6 MAC) took a 3-1 lead in the third on a Jablonski kill and a block by Atiemo and Grace Balensiefer (Lafayette, Ind./McCutcheon). The Cardinals then won four of the next five points to take a 5-4 lead. The Huskies took the lead back at 10-9 following kills from Jablonski and Nikolette Nedic (Willowbrook, Ill./Hinsdale Central). The two teams traded points up to 13-12 when a Gilliland kill sparked a 4-0 Ball State run that put the Cardinals up 16-13. Behind three kills from Nedic, the Huskies tied the set at 17. A Gilliland kill and a block by Natalie Risi broke a 21-21 tie and put Ball State two points away from winning the match. NIU was able to fight off one match point, but Marie Plitt put down the deciding kill that gave Ball State the 25-23 win in the set and a 3-0 match victory.
 
Nedic led the match with 14 kills. Francesca Bertucci (Chicago, Ill./De La Salle) led all players in the match with 18 digs. Ball State hit .302 for the match led by Jaclyn Bulmahn's 11 kills.
 
"Nikolette continues to get more comfortable and understand how she can best use her talents to her advantage," Gooden said. "She was put in a more expanded and challenging role today and she did a solid job of taking risks and going for it."
 
NIU begins a four-match homestand next weekend with a two-match series against the Toledo Rockets at Victor E. Court. The series begins Friday, Oct. 22 at 6 p.m. with the second match Saturday, Oct. 23 at 4 p.m. For tickets, log on to NIUHuskies.com/MyHuskies or call the NIU Athletics Ticket Office at (815) 753-PACK (7225).
 
--NIU--