Ball State University Athletics
Men's Volleyball To Take On The Nations Top Teams
February 11, 2015 | Men's Volleyball
MUNCIE, Ind. -- The No. 15 Ball State men's volleyball team (7-3, 2-1 MIVA) will face their toughest week of competition yet, when it takes on Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association opponents No. 2 Lewis (10-1, 2-0 MIVA) Thursday at Worthen Arena and No. 1 Loyola (8-0, 1-0 MIVA) Saturday in Chicago, Ill. Thursday's match is set for 7:30 p.m. eastern time, while Saturday's action is set for 7 p.m. central time.
Last weekend, Ball State struggled when MIVA foe IPFW handed the Cardinals a 3-2 (25-21, 25-22, 21-25, 19-25, 11-15) heartbreaker loss, making it Ball State's second loss of the season. The Mastodons remain undefeated in the conference after the comeback of a two game deficit.
The Cardinals came out strong, winning the first two sets with attack percentages of .333 and .367, respectively, while the 'Dons marked .133 and .118, with 18 attacking errors. IPFW then turned it around to cinch the next three games with only a total of 12 attacking errors and posting a remarkable .611 attack percentage in the fifth set.
All games were back-and-forth, with 12 lead changes through the first four games, while the entire fifth set held IPFW in the lead consistently.
Defensively, senior libero David Ryan Vander Meer notched 14 digs and three assists, while freshman Matt Walsh tallied two solo blocks paired with 12 block assists. Walsh's 14 blocks tie the Ball State all-time rally-scoring record in a five set match.
The Cardinals dominated the match statistically, holding the advantage in attack percentage (.277 – .242), blocks (17.5-5.0) and attack errors (18-30), despite falling in kills (54-67), digs (47-51) and service aces (5-1) to the Mastodons. Ball State suffered from 15 service errors compared to IPFW's 15 service errors paired with 30 attack errors throughout the five-set match.
Saturday night, the Cardinals fell in 3-0 (24-26, 17-25, 25-27) sweep to George Mason (2-6), while the Patriots earned their second victory of the season.
Leading the Cardinals offensively was freshman Matt Walsh with 10 kills on 16 attempts paired with three blocks, along with junior Marcin Niemczewski who posted 10 kills and three digs. Sophomore Brendan Surane marked the lone service ace for the Cardinals in the three set match, making it his 16th of the season.
Defensively, senior libero David Ryan Vander Meer notched 13 digs and three assists, while senior Shane Witmer marked 11 digs of his own along with a .952 reception percentage on 20 shots.
Ball State suffered from 11 service errors and 22 attack errors compared to George Mason's 12 service errors paired with 15 attack errors.
The Patriots held the advantage in kills (40-37), attack percentage (.243-.161), total attacks (103-93) and blocks (10.5-5.0), despite falling in digs to the Cardinals (38-32).
SCOUTING No. 2 LEWIS: The Flyers currently hold a 10-1 overall record, with a 2-0 MIVA conference record. Their lone loss came when they took on Bringham Young University in a neutral site match that was part of the American Volleyball Coaches Association College Showcase, where the teams went to five sets. Ball State barely holds the all-time series advantage over Lewis at 25-24, including just two home and one road win in the last five years. This year, top players for the Flyers include Greg Petty and Geoff Powell who both hold 99 kills, while Powell was named MIVA Player of the Week this week and Petty records 14 aces. Along with Powell's claimed 47 digs, Tom Beckmann holds a team leading 56 digs. Other standouts include Bobby Walsh, brother of Ball State's Matt Walsh, who has earned 46 total blocks and Scott Fifer who has posted 304 assists. Matt Walsh leads the nation at 1.86 blocks per set, while Bobby Walsh sits in third at 1.44, with team statistics having Ball State leading the nation at 3.32 blocks per set, while Lewis follows in second at 3.05.
SCOUTING No. 1 LOYOLA: The Ramblers hold an undefeated 8-0 record on the season, with a perfect 2-0 record in the MIVA. Loyola holds the 26-19 advantage over Ball State, going 9-1 over the last five years. The Ramblers have only given the Cardinals a total of 12 winning sets and one match victory in the last five years, with the winning match taking place at home on April 17, 2010. Standouts for the Ramblers include both Thomas Jaeschke and Cody Caldwell, who post 99 and 97 kills, respectively, while Jaeschke also holds a team-high of 14 aces. Loyola is coming off of a 2014 season record of 29-1, with the lone loss coming from then-No. 11 USC. Loyola sits at third in the nation in blocks per set (3.02) and assists per set (12.79), while the Ramblers Nicholas Olson sits in second in blocks per set (1.55) and Peter Hutz in second for assists per set (11.54).
Live Stats and Broadcast will be available for fans unable to attend this weekend's matchups at:
LEWIS:
Live Broadcast: http://ballstatesports.com/liveEvents/liveEvents.dbml?SPID=7635&db_oem_id=14200
Live Stats: http://ballstatesports.com/liveStats/liveStats.dbml?SPID=7635&DB_OEM_ID=14200&LIST_SPORT__VOLLEYBALL
LOYOLA:
Live Broadcast: http://www.loyolaramblers.com/collegesportslive/?media=479805
Looking ahead, the Ball State men's volleyball team will return back to Worthen Arena on Friday, Feb. 20 against McKendree, followed by MIVA foe Ohio State on Saturday, Feb. 21.
For the most up-to-date news on Ball State men's volleyball action, follow @BallStateSports and @BallStateMVB on Twitter and Instagram.
