No. 15 MVB Hosts Lindenwood Tonight
January 07, 2011 | Men's Volleyball
CARDINALS OPEN 2011 SEASON FRIDAY: The Ball State men's volleyball team opens its 48th season of competition Friday, when it hosts Lindenwood in a 7:30 p.m. first serve at Worthen Arena . . . Saturday, BSU returns to the Worthen Arena hardwood floor for its annual alumni match starting at 7:30 p.m.
BSU HISTORY: Men's volleyball officially became a varsity sport at Ball State during the 1964 season . . . Since becoming a varsity sport, the men's volleyball program has amassed an 1,034-410-8 overall record for a .715 winning percentage in 47 seasons . . . Men's volleyball joins baseball and men's basketball as the only programs in school history to reach 1,000 wins . . . In addition, only one other NCAA Division I/II men's volleyball program has eclipsed 1,000 wins, with UCLA entering the 2011 season with an 1,201-267 all-time record over 48 years.
BALL STATE VS. LINDENWOOD: Friday's contest marks the third-ever meeting between the Cardinals and the Lions, and first since the 2002 season . . . BSU won both previous matches between the two programs, scoring a 3-0 (30-26, 32-30, 30-27) sweep Feb. 25, 2001 and another 3-0 (30-19, 30-14, 30-18) victory Jan. 20, 2002 . . . Both matches were played at Worthen Arena.
SCOUTING THE CARDINALS: Ball State returns 12 players, including 10 letterwinners and five starters, from last season's squad which posted a 19-11 (7-5 MIVA) record . . . The Cardinals, who ended the season ranked 14th in the nation, advanced to the semifinal round of the MIVA Tournament where it lost to eventual tournament champion Ohio State.
SCOUTING THE LIONS: The 2009 NAIA Men's Volleyball National Champions, Lindenwood is located in St. Charles, Mo. . . . The Lions return 12 players from its 2010 squad which posted a 21-13 overall record and finished the year ranked eighth in the final NAIA Men's Volleyball National Poll.
RULE CHANGE: Starting Friday, matches will get a little shorter, as the NCAA has adopted the 25-point rule for men's volleyball sets starting this season . . . The fifth frame will still be played to 15 points . . . Since rally scoring began in 2001, sets had been played to 30 points, with a 15-point fifth set . . . Each set must still be won by at least two points.
IN THE POLLS: The Ball State men's volleyball team enters the 2011 season ranked 15th in the nation in the annual American Volleyball Coaches Association Division I-II Men's Coaches Top 15 Preseason Poll . . . . Ohio State is the top-ranked MIVA program at No. 7, while Loyola (13th) and Lewis (14th) hold the spots directly ahead of Ball State . . . Southern California enters the year ranked No. 1, followed by UC Irvine, Pepperdine, defending national champion Stanford and BYU.
PRESEASON HONORS: Senior middle attacker J.D. Gasparovic has been named to the 2011 Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association Preseason All-Conference Team as voted on by the league's seven head coaches . . . A two-time MIVA First Team All-Conference selection (2009 & 2010), Gasparovic ranked first in the league and fifth nationally with a single-season career-high 1.49 blocks-per-game average last season . . . In addition, his .405 attack percentage ranked third in the MIVA and 11th nationally.
MORE ON GASPAROVIC: The 2008 MIVA Freshman of the Year, J.D. Gasparovic enters his senior season ranked fifth in program history with a .397 career hitting percentage, while his 1.42 career blocks-per-game average is seventh on BSU's all-time list . . . His 365 career block assists rank sixth in program history, while his 417 career total blocks rank eighth and his five career matches with double-figure blocks are ninth . . . Gasparovic was also a 2009 Volleyball Magazine All-America Second Team selection.
MORE FROM THE MIDDLE: Middle attacker Anders Nelson, a 2009-10 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District 5 Men's At-Large First Team selection, enters his final season with the Cardinals ranked eighth in program history with a .387 career hitting percentage . . . A 2010 All-MIVA Second Team honoree, Nelson's 1.25 career blocks-per-game average ranks eighth in program history.
NELSON PART TWO: A mainstay in the Ball State starting lineup in 2010, Anders Nelson finished the year ranked 17th in the nation in blocking average (1.26) and 22nd in hitting percentage (.365) . . . His averages were seventh and eighth among MIVA players, respectively.
KEY LOSSES: The Cardinals will look to replace a pair of key contributors in libero Billy Ebel and setter Ethan Pheister who graduated after last season . . . Ebel finished his career as one of the top backcourt players in program history after posting a BSU single-season record 3.05 digs-per-game average in 2010. . . Ebel's average ranked second in the league and seventh nationally . . . In addition, his 336 digs ranked fourth in BSU single-season history . . . Pheister, a four-year starter at setter for Ball State, finished his career ranked fourth in program history with 4,103 assists . . . His 11.21 career assists-per-set average ranked fifth in program history, while his 103 career service aces were eighth.
MIVA PRESEASON PREDICTION: The Ball State men's volleyball team was picked to finish fourth in the league's preseason poll . . . Ohio State was selected to win the MIVA with 47 total points and six of seven first-place votes . . . Lewis was picked second with 39 points and one first-place vote, followed by Loyola in third (38), BSU in fourth (29) and IPFW in fifth (21), while Grand Canyon and Quincy tied for sixth with 11 points each.
ALL-ACCESS: Fans can follow the 2011 Ball State men's volleyball team at all home matches with live streaming video courtesy of Ball State All Access . . . All Access packages begin at $9.95 a month.
QUESTION & ANSWER WITH BSU HEAD COACH JOEL WALTON
Ball State men's volleyball head coach Joel Walton talks to ballstatesports.com as his team prepares for the upcoming 2011 season. BSU opens the year Jan. 7 when it hosts Lindenwood at 7:30 p.m. in Worthen Arena.
QUESTION: Can you describe your team as a whole heading into the 2011 season?
Joel Walton: Within our group, we have great players in every position. There is a lot of competition for roles on our team. It is very likely we will see a lot of different lineups as we go through this year. Each week, we are going to tailor our lineup to the guys who are playing good at that moment. There is going to be an internal competition that drives our team, as well as the external competition of wanting to beat whatever opponent we are going to face off against.
Q: Who are the leaders of this year's team?
JW: J.D. and Anders do a great job of leading by example. They are the guys that everyday are on time, in the weight room working hard and in practice they are focused and trying to get as much out of practice as they can.
Larry Wrather and Jamion Hartley are our emotional leaders. Both of those guys give a great deal of energy to our team. When they are either making great defensive plays, blocks and digs, or when they are attacking and producing a lot of kills, the energy and enjoyment that comes out of them as they are playing the game really infuses the rest of our team and gets us all going.
Q: What intrigues you the most about the game of volleyball?
JW: I love breaking it down and I love learning new things as our game evolves. You can't just have a great attacker and see that player be the best he can be, unless you have people passing a good ball to the setter, who in turn, is setting a great ball to the attacker. Then you get to see all the pieces come together and see that attacker truly be whatever his potential allows him to be
