Aayinde Smith wanted to sit down for her post-match interview tonight.

“Make it casual,” she said, patting the bench seat and throwing her arms around the seat back. 

After a five-set marathon victory over No. 2 Central Michigan in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Championship Semifinals, Ball State’s middle blocker needed a change of pace from the emotional rollercoaster the Cardinals endured.

“I’m excited and emotional,” Smith said. “I’m just glad that we had this opportunity to once again play together. God has given us another opportunity to play and I’m blessed about that.”

No. 3 Ball State (22-9, 13-5 MAC) took sets one and two by five or more points, but the Chippewas (24-6, 15-3 MAC) stormed back in sets three and four with four-point victories to force a penultimate fifth set.

Central Michigan flipped their rotation around, forcing the Cardinals into different matchups than they had through two frames.

“It put things that we wanted, matchup-wise, back into their favor,” head coach Kelli Miller Phillips said.

In set five, Central Michigan led 4-2 early, but it would end up being the Chippewa’s only lead of the final frame. A four-point Ball State run would force Central Michigan into a timeout and though it helped the Chippewa’s side out on the next point, the Cardinals would go on to cruise from there. 

“I think it came down to just playing Ball State volleyball,” Smith said. “I think we were playing at 100 at one point and we just needed to knock it down a few notches, breath and reassure everyone that, ‘Hey, take a deep breath. We got it.’’

While blocking was not a huge factor early on in the match, it became key as the night went on. Ball State had 11 total blocks in the match with five coming in the fifth set.

“You’ve got to have your playmakers step up when it matters and that’s ultimately how we finished it,” Phillips said. 

Smith and Tyler finished atop the defensive effort that held the Chippewas to a .183 hitting clip. They were both credited with five kills.

With her side rolling and a point from victory, Phillips called a timeout with something specific in mind.

“I called a play and I said, ‘We’re going to get a kill right here and finish it,’” she said. “Just giving them that confidence [was key]. I had all the confidence in the world that we were going to get that kill. We had three great attacking options up there. We just talked about [putting] hand to the ball and putting one away.”

Carson Tyler connected with Megan Wielonski’s pass on the outside pin, blasting the ball against two Central Michigan blockers before it landed just out of bounds so the celebration could ensue.

It was the newly crowned MAC Freshman of the Year’s 21st kill of the night, leading all players. 

The game-winning assist from Wielonski was her 31st of the night. It was a team-high for the senior setter, backed up by 24 from sophomore setter Lindsey Green. Their performance helped the Cardinals hit a .237 clip on the night.

With No. 4 Western Michigan upsetting No. 1 Bowling Green in the other semifinal, the Cardinals will face off against the team who ended their 10-game win streak in the regular season finale at home. 

Preparing for what will be a third game in three days, Phillips said recovery is going to be the driving force for championship success.

“The biggest thing is going to be getting our bodies ready,” she said. “Plaything three matches in three days, that’s something we haven’t done since non-conference. Just having us as mentally and physically ready to go, that’s going to be the big key tomorrow.”

First serve in the MAC Championship Final is set for 4 p.m. at Stroh Center in Bowling Green, Ohio. 

Contact Daniel Kehn via email at daniel.kehn@bsu.edu or on X @daniel_kehn.

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