Set One
Through long rallies and ties at points eight and nine, BYU would breakaway to a 12-10 lead courtesy of kills from three different Cougars: Thiim, Benson and Teilon-Jonathan Tufuga. Ball State took a timeout once trailing by three at 13-10. Soon following, BYU would do the same when the Cardinals gained some momentum after a 3-0 run, calling a timeout at 16-14, with BYU still leading by two.
A Ball State ace and BYU attack error gave the Cardinals a 21-19 lead late in the set, forcing BYU to burn its second timeout. BYU then mustered two more points to reach a tie off a Cardinal service error and Benson kill, demanding Ball State to call the final timeout of the set.
Two Ball State kills gave the Cardinals their first set point, and would conclude the set at 25-23 off a kill by the 2024 Second Team All-American Tinaishe Ndavazocheva.
Both teams recorded 14 kills, with Ball State nearly outhitting the Cougars .333 compared to BYU’s .321.
Set Two
The second set saw five combined service errors in the first nine points, with BYU ahead by just one at 5-4. A solo block by Hales gave BYU a 13-11 edge, his fourth block of the night. A momentum-swinging 3-0 run by the Cardinals gave them a 15-14 lead, heading into a media timeout.
Setter Noa Haine earned BYU’s first ace of the night, taking the score to 17-16 for the Cougars. After multiple service errors, a kill by Hales and Benson gave BYU a 21-20 lead, causing a Ball State timeout. Another BYU service error allowed Ball State to even the set at 21 until a kill by Thiim took the score to 22-22.
On a set point at 24-23, Ball State served an ace until BYU issued a challenge and the referees called a replay of the point, keeping BYU alive. Another set-point drew a challenge card when BYU challenged its ball in at 26-25, but the call wouldn’t get reversed so Ball State claimed a 27-25 win and a 2-0 match lead.
Set Three
Herget entered BYU’s rotation off the bench in set three and immediately earned an ace in the opening point. Little, another Cougar off the bench, earned a kill, giving BYU an early 2-1 lead. A 4-0 run by the Cougars gave BYU its highest lead of the night so far at 12-8, featuring a Little block and forcing a Ball State timeout.
Benson’s ninth kill of the evening gave BYU a 15-10 lead. Kills from Little and Teon Taylor upped BYU’s commanding lead to 20-14. Herget served his second ace of the night for a 23-14 score, setting up Taylor for a kill on set point to close the third set at 25-14.
Set Four
A 4-0 run, consisting of three consecutive BYU kills and a Ball State error, gave the Cougars a 6-2 lead, causing a Ball State timeout. Two more Little kills took BYU to a 14-9 lead, and Ball State would call another timeout at 16-13 when trailing by three points.
Ball State attempted to close the gap, taking the score to 18-16 and forcing a BYU timeout when the Cougars were up by just two. Immediately following the timeout, BYU responded with a 3-0 run to lead at 21-16.
Little’s eighth kill of the evening gave BYU a 25-19 victory to close set four, carrying the match into a fateful fifth set. Through four sets, the Cougars were hitting .311 on the whole compared to Ball State’s .167 team hitting percentage.
Set Five
After trading points back-and-forth, Ball State earned a two-point advantage at 5-3 with back-to-back kills. Thiim sent a ball straight to the hardwood from the back row for his 17th kill, taking the score to 5-4. Thiim’s kill led to a 4-0 run for BYU, forcing a Ball State timeout at 7-5.
A block by Herget forced the Cardinals to take their final timeout of the set at 10-6, with BYU looking to close the match. Thiim later won a joust at the net for BYU to take a 12-7 lead. The Cougars called a timeout when down three points at 12-9.
BYU saw a match-point at 14-12, and would win off a kill by Benson for a 15-12 victory, claiming a 3-2 win.
Up Next
BYU will face Ball State one more time tomorrow evening on Friday, Jan. 17 at 7 p.m. ET, with live coverage on ESPN+.
