Ball State University Athletics
Men?s Volleyball Ranked 11th In AVCA Preseason Poll
January 06, 2010 | Men's Volleyball
MUNCIE, Ind. - - The Ball State men's volleyball team enters the 2010 season ranked 11th in the nation according to the American Volleyball Coaches Association Division I-II Men's Coaches Top 15 Preseason Poll. The Cardinals open the 2010 campaign Jan. 15 with a 7 p.m. (CT) Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association matchup at Loyola-Chicago.
Ball State returns nine letterwinners and five of six starters from the 2009 squad which finished the season tied for 13th in the nation by posting an 18-10 overall record. The Cardinals also advanced to the championship match of the MIVA Tournament for the second-straight season.
Leading the way for the BSU are three preseason All-MIVA selections; senior setter Ethan Pheister (Shorewood, Wis./Shorewood H.S.), senior libero Billy Ebel (Lenexa, Kan./Bishop Miege H.S.) and junior middle attacker J.D. Gasparovic (St. Louis, Mo./Oakville H.S.).
Gasparovic was a 2009 Volleyball Magazine All-America Second Team selection last season, while also earning 2009 All-MIVA First Team accolades and the 2008 MIVA Freshman of the Year Award. Phiester is a two-time All-MIVA Second Team honoree, while Ebel was named to the 2009 MIVA All-Tournament Team.
AVCA Division I-II Men's Coaches Top 15 Preseason Poll
|
Rank |
School (First-Place Votes) |
Total Points |
2009 Record |
2009 Final Rank |
|
1 |
Southern California (13) |
237 |
21-11 |
2 |
|
2 |
UC Irvine (3) |
218 |
28-5 |
1 |
|
3 |
Stanford |
202 |
21-11 |
6 |
|
4 |
Pepperdine |
186 |
22-5 |
3 |
|
5 |
Penn State |
175 |
27-4 |
5 |
|
6 |
BYU |
160 |
17-13 |
7 |
|
7 |
Long Beach State |
150 |
14-14 |
8 |
|
8 |
UCLA |
136 |
14-16 |
9 |
|
9 |
Cal State Northridge |
112 |
24-7 |
4 |
|
10 |
Ohio State |
101 |
16-12 |
10 |
|
11 |
Ball State |
73 |
18-10 |
T-13 |
|
12 |
Hawai'i |
59 |
9-18 |
15 |
|
13 |
UC San Diego |
57 |
13-15 |
11 |
|
T-14 |
Lewis |
29 |
21-8 |
12 |
|
T-14 |
UC Santa Barbara |
29 |
8-19 |
NR |
Others Receiving Votes and appearing on two or more ballots: Loyola-Chicago 7; Saint Francis 7
Next poll: January 11, 2010
