Ball State University Athletics
Men's Volleyball Prepares for Non-Conference Competition
January 12, 2016 | Men's Volleyball
MUNCIE, Ind. -- The No. 15 Ball State (1-1) men's volleyball team will continue play at home this weekend when it hosts Sacred Heart (0-3) Thursday and Harvard (1-2) Saturday in Worthen Arena at 7:30 p.m. Opening weekend was split for the Cardinals after they fell to No. 13 Stanford 3-0 (14-25, 21-25, 18-25) Friday evening, prior to downing Alderson Broaddus 3-0 (25-12, 25-18, 25-17) on Saturday.
Despite a team-high 12 kills from senior outside attacker Marcin Niemczewski, the Ball State offense struggled to find its rhythm in the season opener, while the defense was continually pressured by the strong serving game of Stanford.
The Cardinals managed to out-block the 13th-ranked Cardinal, but despite the 6.0 to 5.0 edge in the category, the visitors from the MPSF were able to out-hit Ball State .465 (42-9-71) to .221 (32-15-77) on the night. Stanford also served up five aces, while the hosts tallied none.
Ball State then rebounded quickly with a significant 3-0 (25-12, 25-18, 25-17) sweep of Alderson Broaddus (0-2). The effort was built of a .344 team attack percentage, three service aces, and nine total team blocks, all coming from a combination of 13 different players from the Ball State squad.
Senior Jack Lesure marked a team leading 11 kills, one ace and three block assists. Other standouts at the front line included junior Marcin Niemczewski, who earned a 1.000 hitting percentage, as well as junior Edgardo Cartagena, who tallied six kills, including the match point.
The Cardinals dominated the Battlers in nearly every statistical category over the course of the three sets, including kills (33-25), digs (22-19) and points (45.0-28.0), in addition to punching in a slanted .344 attack percentage while holding the visitors to -.036.
Nationally, Ball State dropped this week from a 14th-ranking to No. 15.
SCOUTING SACRED HEART: The Cardinals are undefeated against the Pioneers, holding a 7-0 reign, including a 4-0 record in Worthen Arena. Most recently, the Pioneers competed in the UCSB ASICS Invitational against CSUN, Long Beach State, and UC Santa Barbara, in which they lost 3-2, 3-0, and 3-0, respectively. Juniors Michael Comens and Chris Delucie lead the team, with 21 kills a piece, while Comens sports three aces. Sacred Heart was selected seventh overall in the Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association Preseason Coaches' Poll, after ending the 2015 season at 12-13, which were the most wins since the team went 13-9 in the 2011 season.
SCOUTING HARVARD: After going 1-2 in the Outrigger Resorts Invitational, Harvard returns to the Ball State University campus for the second time in three seasons. The Cardinals hold a 2-0 advantage over the Crimson after downing Harvard in Muncie 3-2 in the 2014 season, as well as sweeping in Cambridge, Mass. in the 2015 season. Returning to the team is senior captain Brendan Clemens, who is ranked ninth all-time at Harvard in digs (348) and block assists (116), and was voted All-EIVA first team in the 2015 season, as well as two other starters. Harvard was selected to finish sixth overall in the Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association Preseason Coaches' Poll, after posting a 13-12 overall record in the 2015 season.
Live stats and broadcast will be available for fans unable to attend this weekend's matchups at:
LIVE STATS: http://www.ballstatesports.com/liveStats/liveStats.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=14200&LIST_SPORT__VOLLEYBALL
LIVE BROADCAST: rtmp://neulioncs.fc.llnwd.net/neulioncs/s_ballstate_video_1
Looking ahead, the Ball State men's volleyball team will hit the road for a six-match road stretch, beginning with Penn State Jan. 22 and Saint Francis Jan. 23.
For the most up-to-date news on Ball State men's volleyball action, follow @BallStateSports and @BallStateMVB on Twitter and Instagram.
