Saturday, January 5
Muncie, Ind.
7:00 PM
Ball State University
2-0
3
vs
2
New Jersey Institute of Technology
0-2
1
2
3
4
5
F
NJIT
20
17
25
25
10
2
Ball State
25
25
22
21
15
3
Ball State Fights off NJIT Comeback, Wins 3-2
January 05, 2019 | Men's Volleyball
MUNCIE, Ind. – After the Ball State men's volleyball team took a commanding two-set lead, New Jersey Institute of Technology rallied to even the match at 2-2 before the Cardinals secured the decisive fifth set on Saturday night at Worthen Arena (25-20, 25-17, 22-25, 21-25, 15-10).
The victory pushed Ball State to 2-0 for the season and marked the 12th straight victory at home. NJIT dropped to 0-2 on the year.
"It was a tale of two different matches," said Ball State head coach Joel Walton. "We played well in the first two games and our offense was rolling. In games three and four NJIT started to serve better and they made some adjustments that we didn't handle very well. Game five we got back into our offensive flow and it was critical for our guys to come through in some really important moments."
After newcomers Kaleb Jenness and Felix Egharevba led the way for BSU in a 3-0 sweep of Princeton just one night earlier, the Cardinals relied on the experience of returning players David Siebum and Matt Szews in a more tightly contested match.
Siebum led the way for Ball State in kills with 14 while Szews was not far behind with 13. The pair combined for six service aces, four blocks and 13 digs. They also added one assist apiece.
"Szews was having to take some really difficult swings tonight, but we need his arm because he balances out the defense when he's playing well," Walton said. "I thought Siebum put together back-to-back nights that were really solid. His offense was much needed and he hit some really smart shots at critical times.
Despite a contested match that went five sets, Ball State won most of the statistical categories Saturday night. The offense produced 54 kills compared to 41 for the Highlanders, as well as 10 service aces to NJIT's six. Fifty assists outperformed 40 from NJIT and the Cardinals narrowly won the digs battle by a tally of 40-37.
After cruising through sets one and two, the momentum began to shift when NJIT took set three. Ball State tried to recover in set four after the Highlanders led by as many as seven, but could only trim the deficit to one as NJIT went on to win 25-21.
The Highlanders led 4-3 early in set five, but Ball State quickly rediscovered its rhythm with a 3-0 run to claim a 6-4 lead. The Cardinals wouldn't surrender the lead for the remainder of the match and gradually gained separation to win the final set 15-10.
After two matches in two nights to open the year, BSU now gets a night off before squaring off against UC Irvine on Monday night at Worthen Arena. The Anteaters were selected as the No. 4 team in the country in the initial AVCA Top-15 poll. First serve is slated for 7:00 p.m. ET and admission to the match is free.
For all the latest on Ball State men's volleyball, follow @BallStateMVB on social media and visit BallStateSports.com.
The victory pushed Ball State to 2-0 for the season and marked the 12th straight victory at home. NJIT dropped to 0-2 on the year.
"It was a tale of two different matches," said Ball State head coach Joel Walton. "We played well in the first two games and our offense was rolling. In games three and four NJIT started to serve better and they made some adjustments that we didn't handle very well. Game five we got back into our offensive flow and it was critical for our guys to come through in some really important moments."
After newcomers Kaleb Jenness and Felix Egharevba led the way for BSU in a 3-0 sweep of Princeton just one night earlier, the Cardinals relied on the experience of returning players David Siebum and Matt Szews in a more tightly contested match.
Siebum led the way for Ball State in kills with 14 while Szews was not far behind with 13. The pair combined for six service aces, four blocks and 13 digs. They also added one assist apiece.
"Szews was having to take some really difficult swings tonight, but we need his arm because he balances out the defense when he's playing well," Walton said. "I thought Siebum put together back-to-back nights that were really solid. His offense was much needed and he hit some really smart shots at critical times.
Despite a contested match that went five sets, Ball State won most of the statistical categories Saturday night. The offense produced 54 kills compared to 41 for the Highlanders, as well as 10 service aces to NJIT's six. Fifty assists outperformed 40 from NJIT and the Cardinals narrowly won the digs battle by a tally of 40-37.
After cruising through sets one and two, the momentum began to shift when NJIT took set three. Ball State tried to recover in set four after the Highlanders led by as many as seven, but could only trim the deficit to one as NJIT went on to win 25-21.
The Highlanders led 4-3 early in set five, but Ball State quickly rediscovered its rhythm with a 3-0 run to claim a 6-4 lead. The Cardinals wouldn't surrender the lead for the remainder of the match and gradually gained separation to win the final set 15-10.
After two matches in two nights to open the year, BSU now gets a night off before squaring off against UC Irvine on Monday night at Worthen Arena. The Anteaters were selected as the No. 4 team in the country in the initial AVCA Top-15 poll. First serve is slated for 7:00 p.m. ET and admission to the match is free.
For all the latest on Ball State men's volleyball, follow @BallStateMVB on social media and visit BallStateSports.com.
Team Stats
NJIT
BSU
Kills
41
54
Errors
27
27
Attempts
122
126
Hitting %
.115
.214
Points
59.5
75.5
Assists
40
50
Aces
6
10
Blocks
12.5
11.5
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
14
Aces
2
Blocks
2
Kills
13
Aces
4
Blocks
2
Kills
9
Aces
1
Blocks
4
Kills
9
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Players Mentioned
MA
/ Men's VolleyballOA
/ Men's Volleyball
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/ Men's Volleyball
OA
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