Ball State University Athletics
MVB Gears Up For Final Week Of Regular Season
April 06, 2015 | Men's Volleyball
MUNCIE, Ind. -- The Ball State men's volleyball team (12-14, 5-9 MIVA) will complete regular season action when it takes on Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association opponents No. 11 Ohio State (19-6, 9-3 MIVA) Friday and McKendree (11-16, 1-12 MIVA) Saturday. Both matches are set for 7 p.m. with Saturday's lineup taking place central time.
Last weekend, Ball State continued MIVA play on the road against rival IPFW in a 3-0 (18-25, 22-25, 18-25) final falling to the Mastodons to make it Ball State's third losing sweep in a row. The loss occurred in the midst of a seven-match Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association stretch, with just two matches remaining in the regular season.
Leading the Cardinals offensively was senior Shane Witmer, who tallied eight kills on 15 attempts for a .467 attack percentage, along with junior Marcin Niemczewski who posted seven kills, one ace and one block assists. Earning his 27th ace of the season was sophomoreBrendan Surane, while he also marked four kills, two blocks, and one dig.
Defensively, freshman Matt Walsh marked two of his own block assists with an additional five kills, and libero David Ryan Vander Meer tallied three digs. Setter Connor Gross also posted two block assists and 24 assists throughout the three-set match. Witmer received a team-high of 16 shots with a .889 reception percentage, while Vander Meer marked 13 with a .867 reception rate.
Ball State suffered from 10 service errors and 10 attack errors compared to the Mastodons' 13 service errors paired with 11 attack errors. IPFW also only allowed a total of three lead changes throughout the three sets, and dominated with 10 aces to the Cardinals two.
The 'Dons held the advantage in nearly every statistical category, including kills (41-27), attack percentage (.417-.288), digs (17-12), blocks (6.0-4.0), and total attacks over the Cardinals (72-59) in the course of the three-set match.
SCOUTING No. 11 OHIO STATE: The Buckeyes hold a 19-6 record on the season, including a 9-3 MIVA record. Ohio State holds the 91-82 advantage over Ball State, though the Cardinals are 55-53 on the road, including a current four match win streak over the Buckeyes. Earlier this season, Ball State was able to sweep the Buckeyes 3-0 (25-19, 25-22, 25-23) in Worthen Arena. Standouts for Ohio State include both Michael Henchy and Nicolas Szerszen, who both post 36 and 34 aces, repectively, while Henchy also holds a team-high of 275 kills. The Buckeyes are riding on a three match win streak, while Christy Blough ranks fourth in the nation in assists per set at 11.09.
SCOUTING McKENDREE: The Bearcats are on a two match losing streak after they were swept by Quincy last weekend, and hold an 11-16 overall record, with a 1-12 MIVA conference record. The lone conference victory came on Feb. 28 when they downed now-No. 14 IPFW at home 3-1. McKendree is a new opponent for Ball State, as the two teams have only held two matches against each other. Last year in the Bearcats inaugural season, the Cardinals swept 3-0 at Worthen Arena, while on Feb. 20 this season, Ball State swept McKendree again 3-0. This year, top players for McKendree include Jared Wilcox who holds 280 kills and a team-leading 26 aces, along with Wyatt Patterson, Brendan Schmidt and Maalik Walker, who all post over 170 kills. Schmidt has also recorded 102 total blocks and 27 digs, while Walker tallies 81 digs and 56 total blocks.
Live Stats and Broadcast will be available for fans unable to attend this weekend's matchups at:
OHIO STATE:
Live Broadcast: http://www.ohiostatebuckeyes.com/collegesportslive/?media=467751
Live Stats: http://www.ohiostatebuckeyes.com/collegesportslive/?media=467751
McKENDREE:
Live Broadcast: http://mckbearcats.com/watch/?Live=155
Live Stats: http://www.sidearmstats.com/mckendree/mvball/
Looking ahead, the Ball State men's volleyball team will compete in the MIVA conference tournament from April 24 to May 1. Details will be released following the conclusion of the regular season.
For the most up-to-date news on Ball State men's volleyball action, follow @BallStateSports and @BallStateMVB on Twitter and Instagram.
