Kent State University
10-10, 3-5MAC
Ball State
11-9,5-3MAC
Gardner Gets 1,000th Dig in Sweep of Ball State
10/19/2019 7:58:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
KENT, Ohio – The Kent State volleyball team put together one of its best performances of the season as the Mid-American Conference schedule hit the midway mark with a 3-0 sweep (25-17, 25-22, 25-19) of preseason West Division favorite Ball State on Saturday. This is the first time the Cardinals have lost to a conference foe in straight sets this season.
The Golden Flashes (10-10, 3-5 MAC) have won three of their past four matches and got strong play at the pin, as freshman Morgan Copley, senior Ashley Makruski and freshman Savannah Matthews combined for 35 kills and a .369 hitting percentage. Redshirt sophomore Alex Haffner finished with 36 assists while adding four kills and nine digs.
"I'm really excited with how our players have been competing, executing and just making good decisions overall these past two weekends," said head coach Don Gromala. "Alex put our hitters in good positions, and our hitters were seeing the block really well. Morgan had another great match and is in a really good flow right now. Our service pressure tonight was huge. We were able to put some pressure on one of their key hitters and that made it harder for them to do what they wanted to offensively."
Sophomore Erin Gardner recorded her 1,000th career dig during the night's second set, diving in for a pancake following a setter dump by Ball State's Amber Seaman and keeping the ball alive for Savannah Matthews to put away and extend the lead to 8-3. Gardner needed only 189 sets to achieve the milestone, which is 20 fewer than any other player in program history. The Avon, Ohio native finished with 10 digs and registered a career-high seven aces.
"We are lucky to have Erin as a Golden Flash," Gromala noted. "She is an extremely hard worker and a vocal leader in our backcourt. She's made some great strides improving her game since she's been here. A lot of teams are trying to hit away from her now, but Erin's staying focused and finding ways to contribute. Tonight, it was with her serve. She had some big serving runs that were important to the win."
Morgan Copley posted a match-high 15 kills while hitting at a .424 clip in the victory. Ashley Makruski joined her in double-figures with 11 kills. Savannah Matthews added nine kills and a match-high 13 digs to lead the defense. Danie Tyson made her presence known at the net with five total blocks.
Kent State starts the second half of the MAC schedule next weekend at Northern Illinois and Western Michigan to start a stretch of five consecutive road contests.
Be sure to follow Kent State Volleyball on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for news and updates about the squad.
