Ball State University
Penn State
Men's Volleyball Nearly Upsets No. 3 Penn State
January 19, 2008 | Men's Volleyball
MUNCIE, Ind. - - Despite out-hitting No. 3 Penn State, the Ball State men's volleyball team suffered a hard-fought 3-1 (30-23, 28-30, 30-27, 34-32) setback to the Nittany Lions Friday night at Worthen Arena.
In front of a crowd of 1,178, the Cardinals battled from down 22-14 in the fourth game off some strong serving from freshman Marcus Imwalle (Maria Stein, Ohio/Marion Local H.S.) to tie the game at 24-24. However, the visitors from Pennsylvania recovered to win the set (34-32) and the match.
“I was very proud of the way our guys came out and competed tonight,” said Ball State head coach Joel Walton. “While we did not get the win, I think we made some baby steps in the right direction. What we need now is to get wins for them to become big steps forward.”
Eight players recorded double-figure kills in the contest, with four players from each squad reaching double digits.
Senior Patrick Durbin (Louisville, Ky./Trinity H.S.) paved the way for the Ball State offense, racking up a season-high 20 kills, while tying for second on the squad with six digs.
Junior Matt McCarthy (Wheaton, Ill./Wheaton Warrenville South H.S.) connected for 16 kills in the contest, while adding match-highs of eight total blocks and a .625 attack percentage.
Junior Todd Chamberlain (Louisville, Ky./Trinity H.S.) and Imwalle each smashed 13 kills for BSU, with Chamberlain adding a team-high seven digs and Imwalle collecting a match-best three service aces, including two in his eight-point service run in the fourth game.
Penn State's Matt Anderson paced all players with 25 kills, while Max Holt added 15, Ryan Sweitzer recorded 14 and Max Lipsitz scored 10.
Overall, the Cardinals finished their home opener with a .314 (66-22-140) attack percentage, compared to a .295 (71-27-149) rate of success for the Nittany Lions.
The opening game saw the teams trade the first four points before a BSU service error, back-to-back Nittany Lion blocks and a Ball State attack error gave PSU a 6-2 advantage. Penn State did not trail the rest of the game, taking the set 30-23.
Penn State jumped out to an early 6-3 advantage in the second set and held a three-point advantage at the 14-11 mark, only to see kills from Imwalle and Durbin, followed by a block assists from Durbin and McCarthy tie the set at 14-14.
BSU took its first lead since the opening point of the set at the 21-20 mark off a Penn State attack error and pulled ahead 23-21 off two more kills from Durbin and Imwalle.
The Nittany Lions responded with a 4-1 run to reclaim a slim 25-24 advantage and force Ball State to call its first time out of the game. BSU exited the brake with three-straight points, capped by a McCarthy solo block, and went on to take a three-point lead at 29-26.
Penn State scored the next two points, forcing the Cardinals to call their second time out, before a service error ended the game 30-28 in favor of the hosts.
Much like the first two games, the Nittany Lions held an early 5-2 advantage in the third frame, only to see the Cardinals tie the game at 6-6 with a 4-1 run capped by a pair of Chamberlain kills. The teams traded the lead several times before settling on a 25-25 tie.
Unfortunately for the Cardinals, Penn State scored the next three points and went on to win the set 30-27 on an Anderson kill.
The fourth game saw the teams play to a 4-4 tie before a strong run gave the Nittany Lions a 22-14 advantage. With Penn State poised to win the match, a kill from Durbin and a strong service run from Imwalle help the Cardinals rally off the next eight points and tie the set at 22-22.
However, Ball State could not get over the final hump, as seven ties followed before a Sweitzer kill and a BSU attack error ended the game at 34-32.
Freshman J.D. Gasparovic (St. Louis, Mo./Oakville H.S.) was the only other BSU player to log a kill in the contest, finishing the night with four.
Sophomore Ethan Pheister (Shorewood, Wis./Shorewood H.S.) directed the Ball State attack, dishing out a career-high 59 assists, while adding a career-best six block assists.
Penn State's libero Dennis Del Valle paced all players with 16 digs.
While BSU held the offensive advantage, PSU out-dug the Cardinals 43-to-36 and scored five aces to the Cardinals' three. Both teams finished the night with 11.5 team blocks.
The Ball State men's volleyball team returns to Worthen Arena Saturday night with a 7:30 p.m. non-conference showdown with St. Francis.
