MUNCIE, Ind. – The Northern Kentucky volleyball team dropped a 3-set decision (25-19, 25-21, 27-25) at Ball State on Friday night. With the loss, the Norse dip to 4-4 on the year and Ball State improves to 9-2.

STATS LEADERS

• Anna Brinkmann notched her fifth double-double of the season with 11 kills and a match-high 13 digs. The senior hit .258 and added a pair of blocks as well.
• Reilly Briggs contributed nine kills behind a .261 hitting effort.
• Katy Yopko had 19 assists.
• Natalie Hardig and Abby Kanakry added five and four blocks, respectively.

 
FIRST SET SUMMARY   

• Brinkmann put away six terminations on just 10 swings without an error in the frame, but the Norse dropped a 25-19 decision.
• Both teams hit at a torrid clip. NKU put away 14 kills with just one hitting error for a .448 hitting clip. Ball State one-upped the Norse with 20 kills, two errors and a .486 attacking percentage.
• Miranda Wucherer had four digs and eight assists.

 
SECOND SET SUMMARY   

• Ball State jumped out to a quick 4-1 lead and sustained the momentum throughout the frame en route to a 25-21 finish.
• Briggs paced the Norse attack in the stanza with four terminations, while Brinkmann picked up six scoops.
• Hardig was big at the net and registered three of her five stuffs.

 
THIRD SET SUMMARY 

• NKU regrouped and ran out to an 8-3 lead, only to see BSU respond and tie the set at nine.
• From that point on it was a see-saw type of set.
• Trailing by two, 23-21, Banks and Brinkmann registered consecutive kills and the Norse were the beneficiaries of a Cardinal hitting error to regain the lead, 24-23.
• Northern Kentucky had two set-point opportunities, but were unable to convert and Ball State rattled off three-straight points to win 27-25.
• Briggs had four more kills and both Brinkmann and Allie Siefke contributed three.

 
MATCH NOTES   

• NKU finished with 40 kills, but BSU registered 50. However, the Norse held a decisive 9-5 advantage in blocks.
• In addition to five double-doubles on the year, Brinkmann has now reached double-figure kills in seven-straight matches. She's averaging 4.00 kills per set during the stretch.
• Yopko has been sneaky good with dumps around the net in the last three matches. She's connected on an attack percent of .455 as a whole this year, but over the last three matches she has posted eight kills at a .500 hitting percentage. She hit .600 tonight with three kills in five attempts.

 
NEXT UP 
Northern Kentucky and Ball State will run it back on Saturday in Worthen Arena at 3:00 p.m.