Ball State University Athletics
Ball State University
3-0
Penn State
0-3
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Penn State | 31 | 25 | 24 | 19 | 12 | 2 |
| Ball State | 29 | 22 | 26 | 25 | 15 | 3 |
Men?s Volleyball Upsets No. 10 Penn State In 3-2 Win
January 16, 2015 | Men's Volleyball
MUNCIE, Ind. - - The Ball State (3-0) men's volleyball team remains undefeated with the upset win over No. 10 Penn State (0-3) Friday evening. The Cardinals overcame a two game deficit to take the victory 3-2 (29-31, 22-25, 26-24, 25-19, 15-12) in the home opening match at Worthen Arena.
“It's nice our guys kept plugging away. We were so close in those first two games, and they just slipped away from us,” Ball State men's volleyball head coach Joel Walton said. “We made a couple adjustments and our players responded. I'm proud of our whole team and how we kept the pressure on Penn State.”
A well rounded Ball State team held Penn State to a 0.256 overall attacking average throughout the five games, while the Cardinals posted 0.320. This was with the help of junior outside attack Marcin Niemczewski who finished with 19 kills and senior outside attack Shane Witmer with 17 kills. Niemczewski also racked up eight digs, two blocks and one ace, while Witmer held 13 digs and five blocks.
Defensively, senior libero David Ryan Vander Meer received 26 shots with 17 digs, and sophomore outside attack Brendan Surane boasted 6 serving aces plus two blocks on the night. Junior setter Hiago Garchet posted an outstanding 56 assists on 116 sets, while serving an error-free 23 serves. In the final push of the fifth game, Garchet marked a five-point serving streak leading up to his assist on Niemczewski's match-ending kill.
“It's just the beginning with it being the first game at home, so we need to keep working and getting better and better,” Garchet said. “In the third set we came out with more energy and that's the key. More energy, more communication and we won. We're happy tonight.”
The stand out of Penn State came from a dominating Aaron Russell who marked 32 kills, five digs, three aces and three blocks. Russell held down the Lion offense with setter Taylor Hammond who tallied 60 assists and a .947 serve percentage on 19 serves.
“The big blocks was some of the momentum that we needed since Penn State had us back on our heels and we needed to get them back on theirs,” Coach Walton said of the turnaround in the third set.
Tonight's match marked the 10th highest attendance of a home men's volleyball match in Worthen Arena history, clocking in at 1,513 fans.
“We need to celebrate this moment and feel really good about it, but we've got to play another match tomorrow night,” Coach Walton went on. “Saint Francis beat us last year at their place and I would love to see our guys come in with a bit of a chip on their shoulder and with something to prove. We need to keep improving each week as we go along.”
The Ball State men's volleyball team will continue with their home-opening slate tomorrow evening, when they host Saint Francis at 7:30 p.m. in Worthen Arena.
For the most up-to-date news on Ball State men's volleyball, follow @BallStateSports and @BallStateMVB on Twitter and Instagram.
