Ball State University Athletics
Ball State University
17-6 (9-2MIVA)
Ohio State
19-3 (10-1MIVA)
No. 9 Men?s Volleyball Falls To No. 1 Ohio State In 3-1 Final
March 26, 2016 | Men's Volleyball
MUNCIE, Ind. – The No. 9 Ball State (17-6, 9-2 MIVA) men's volleyball team faced No. 1 Ohio State (19-3, 10-1 MIVA) in Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association play on Friday evening in Worthen Arena. Despite the Cardinals racking up 13.5 blocks against the Buckeyes, Ohio State sealed the win 3-1 (22-25, 25-21, 22-25, 15-25) to take first place in the MIVA conference.
“I thought we competed pretty well for three games and then tried to switch it up in the fourth with some offense,” Ball State men's volleyball head coach Joel Walton said. “I think our offense actually hit better than them in game one. It was more that we won game two behind defense, and game three they missed a couple serves keeping things close.”
The Ball State blocking game stole the show at critical points in the first set, holding the Cardinals even with the top team in the nation at five different points. Ball State held a 3.0 edge over the Buckeyes 0.0 after the first, although Ohio State came in strong with its highest hitting percentage of the night of .344 to take the first set by a narrow 25-22 final.
Ball State then took advantage of the numerous Ohio State attacking errors in the second set on the way to the lone Cardinal game victory of the night. The Buckeyes committed eight errors on the attack, leading to the Cardinals to run with a 21-13 advantage early on. It was Ohio State's Nicolas Szerszen who helped narrow the scoring gap by marking back-to-back aces on the Cardinals, prior to senior Marcin Niemczewski subbing in for Ball State. It was then that the Cardinals began to roll, and with a kick by Niemczewski and a quick handed attack by senior setter Hiago Garchet, the second set was settled at 25-21 in favor of the home team.
The third set score was just as narrow as the rest of the match, although Ohio State never let up a change in their lead throughout the game. Junior Alex Pia shortened the Buckeye advantage when he jumped for back-to-back block assists, closing the score to just a 23-22 edge, although Ohio State was ultimately able to settle its second set victory of the night on a Cardinal attacking error.
“I think we came out the first three sets and gave them a match. They were kind of timid in that second set we got on a big run. They looked a little scared and it was a good feeling,” junior Brendan Surane said. “Then their serving really got to us in the fourth set. We couldn't really get anything going.”
With just two tie scores in the fourth game, the Buckeyes were then able to clinch the victory by a 25-15 edge. By improving to a 10-1 mark in conference play, Ohio State leads the MIVA outright, while the Cardinal fall to second with its 9-2 record.
“Offense is really important to us and for three games we were out hitting Ohio State, so for three games our offense was doing some very good things. We got to game four and our offense went away, and our defense went away,” Coach Walton went on. “Their serving pressure in game three and game four kind of broke us down, and we knew coming into the match that was going to be a big part of how Ohio State plays. Ultimately, we dug a big hole in game four and couldn't come back from that.”
MIVA Offensive Player of the Week, Surane lived up to the honor tonight by tallying a team-high of 13 kills on the night. Pia was a powerhouse for both the offensive and defensive lines by totaling six kills with a .545 attack percentage in addition to seven block assists. Sophomore Mitch Weiler matched Pia's blocking game by putting up a total of seven blocks in addition to nine kills.
“We are a really good team we just need to fine tune all our skills with big conference matches approaching. We just need to practice and get all our details figured out,” Surane added.
The top-ten matchup was a close one in nearly every statistical category. Ohio State held the edge in attack percentage (.270-.237), kills (55-44), aces (5-2) and digs (47-34), although the Cardinals held to less attacking errors (17-22) and jumped for more successful blocks (13.5-7.0).
“We now have five matches left within conference play,” Walton said. “Every single match is important and we just have to take them one at a time and be ready to go.”
Tomorrow the Cardinals will welcome McKendree to Worthen Arena for more MIVA play, which will feature a special recognition session for Senior Night after the match. First serve is at 7:30 p.m.
For the most up-to-date news on Ball State men's volleyball action, follow @BallStateSports and @BallStateMVB on Twitter and Instagram.
