MUNCIE, Ind. – The Toledo women's volleyball team ended its regular season with a loss at Ball State on Wednesday.
The Rockets (18-11, 11-7 MAC) had already clinched their spot in the MAC Tournament next week, and following Wednesday's results they have clinched the No. 5 seed in the tournament. They will face No. 4 seed Central Michigan in the first round on Sunday.
By virtue of its win, Ball State clinches the MAC Regular Season Title and will host the MAC Tournament. Rounding out the rest of the tournament field will be No. 2 seed Bowling Green, No. 3 seed Ohio, and No. 6 seed Buffalo.
The MAC Tournament begins on Sunday, Nov. 20. Game times have yet to be announced.
In Wednesday's match, Toledo was led by junior Taylor Alt who tallied a team-best 12 kills. Senior Olivia Vance added five terminations and four blocks, while senior Rhyenne Filisi and junior Jada Bouyer added six kills apiece. Junior Mary-Kate Lopez made her first start at setter and accumulated 26 assists.
1st Set (25-18, Ball State)
Toledo opened the match by taking a 13-10 lead, which was fueled by a 5-0 scoring run. Trailing 10-8, the Rockets scored five points in a row to go up by three, a spurt that was capped by a kill from Alt. Toledo still led at 17-15, but not for long as the Cardinals launched a 9-0 run to go up 24-17. A BSU service error prolonged the first set, but clinched the set on the next point and put the Rockets in a 1-0 hole in the match.
2nd Set (25-21, Ball State)
The second set was neck-and-neck from beginning to end, featuring 18 tie scores and eight lead changes. Toledo grabbed a late 19-18 lead after scoring two points in a row, but Ball State put together another run, scoring five points in a row to make it 23-19. The final score would settle at 25-21, giving Ball State a 2-0 lead in the match.
3rd Set (25-16, Ball State)
Toledo scored the first point of the third set on a service ace from freshman Macy Medors, but that would be the last time it held a lead in the match. Ball State quickly built an 8-4 advantage and didn't look back, eventually winning 25-16 to take the set and the match.
