Ball State University Athletics
MVB Visits Ohio State Friday, Hosts IPFW Saturday
February 15, 2012 | Men's Volleyball
►THE WEEK AHEAD: The Ball State men's volleyball team will play a pair of pivotal MIVA matches this weekend, starting Friday when it travels to Ohio State for a 7 p.m. first serve versus the defending league and national champions . . . Saturday, the Cardinals return to Worthen Arena for an I-69 showdown versus IPFW at 7:30 p.m.
►FOLLOW THE ACTION: Live stats, live audio and live video will be available for both matches this week . . . WCRD 91.3 FM will also cover both contests live over the airwaves and online at BallStateSports.com with Tim Keane and C.J. Allard calling the action . . . Streaming video will be provided through Buckeye Vision ($9.95 a month) for Friday's match and as part of the Ball State All Access package Saturday ($9.95 a month).
►CARDINALS ALL-TIME: After posting a 2-0 record last week, the Ball State men's volleyball program enters Friday's match versus Ohio State with a 1060-425-8 (.713) all-time record in 48-plus seasons of play . . . The program, which officially became a varsity sport at Ball State during the 1964 season, 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 weekend with an 1,229-284 all-time record over 49-plus years.
►250 AND COUNTING: Joel Walton, who is in his 14th season as BSU's head coach, picked up his 250th career victory in a 3-2 thriller at George Mason (Jan. 14) . . . After the Cardinals went 2-0 last week, Walton enters Friday's match against Ohio State with a 256-140 (.646) career record . . . Walton is 8-25 (.242) all-time versus Ohio State and 21-7 (.750) against IPFW.
►ALL-TIME VERSUS OHIO STATE: Despite 10 straight wins by the Buckeyes, the Cardinals hold a 98-88-1 lead in the all-time series . . . BSU's last win came Feb. 15, 2008 in a 3-1 (26-30, 30-28, 32-30, 31-29) home court victory . . . Ball State, which is 31-45 all-time in Columbus, last picked up a road win in the series April 7, 2006 by a score of 3-0 (30-21, 31-29, 30-22).
►ALL-TIME VERSUS IPFW: The Cardinals hold a commanding 66-25 lead in the all-time series versus the Mastodons, including nine consecutive victories . . . IPFW's last win in the series came April 7, 2007 by a score of 3-0 (30-24, 30-25, 30-20) in Fort Wayne . . . BSU holds a 30-11 edge in matches played in Muncie, having won six straight in Worthen Arena.
►SCOUTING THE CARDINALS: The Cardinals enter the week with a 7-4 (1-2 MIVA) record after posting home wins over Lindenwood (3-1) and MIVA foe Quincy (3-0) last week . . . Redshirt junior right side attacker Jamion Hartley paces the BSU attack with a 2.71 kills-per-set average, while junior outside attacker Larry Wrather is second at 2.41 kps . . . Sophomore setter Graham McIlvaine has guided BSU to a .218 rate of success on offense by handing out 9.22 assists per set . . . Sophomore middle blocker Kevin Owens leads the team with 49 total blocks (1.17 bps) and a .409 hitting percentage . . . Sophomore libero Tommy Rouse averages 2.43 digs per set to pace the BSU back court.
►TAKING CHARGE AT THE NET: In its pair of wins last weekend, the Cardinals turned in a dominating performance at the net, averaging 3.43 blocks per set . . . Kevin Owens led the charge with 11 total blocks for a 1.57 average . . . Redshirt sophomore middle blocker Matt Leske was second at 1.29 bps, followed by McIlvaine (1.14 bps) and Wrather (1.00 bps).
►MORE FROM THE NET: After leading the nation in blocking last season at 3.07 bps, the Cardinals enter the week ranked ninth in the country at 2.65 this season . . . Kevin Owens is the top-ranked BSU player at 12th with a 1.17 bps average.
►THE KNOCKOUT PUNCH: Kevin Owens turned in another solid performance last week, hitting .520 (14-1-25) and collecting 11 total blocks in BSU's wins over Lindenwood and Quincy . . . He hit .500 (9-1-16) versus the Lions, while collecting six blocks . . . In the league showdown versus the Hawks, he hit .556 (5-0-9) and tallied five blocks . . . Owens has hit .500-or-better in four matches this season, while posting five-or-more blocks six times.
►FROM THE BACK ROW: Sophomore libero Tommy Rouse, who was named the MIVA Defensive Player of Week Jan. 23, enters the week ranked third in the league with a 2.43 digs-per-set average . . . He also boasts a .982 (219-for-223) reception percentage this season.
