Wednesday, April 20
Muncie, Ind.
7 pm
Ball State University
vs
No. 4 Lewis
Men’s Volleyball Faces Lewis Wednesday at Home in MIVA Tourney Semifinals
April 19, 2022 | Men's Volleyball
The Cardinals are the top seed while the Flyers are seeded at No. 4
MIVA Semifinals
No. 1 seed Ball State (21-3) | No. 4 seed Lewis (16-11)
(Ball State is the No. 7 team in the country while Lewis is ranked No. 12)
Muncie, Ind. | Worthen Arena
Date: April 20 at 7 pm ET | Watch: ESPN3 | Live Stats | Tickets
Ball State vs. Lewis in the Tournament Results (Ball State leads 6-4, 1-2 Championship, 4-2 Semifinals, 1-0 Quarterfinals)
The Last Time: The last time Ball State and Lewis faced off in the Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association Tournament semifinal round was in 2021. The Cardinals played the Flyers in Romeoville, Ill. on April 17 losing that match by a score of 3-0. It just so happens that the last time Ball State won the tournament title they faced Lewis in the semifinal round defeating the Flyers by a score of 3-1 in Worthen Arena on April 27,2002.
Scouting Lewis: Lewis comes to Ball State after earning a five-set thrilling win against Ohio State last Saturday in the MIVA Tournament quarterfinals. Lewis made a comeback versus the Buckeyes after dropping sets one and two. The Cardinals won both meetings against the Flyers in MIVA regular season action this year winning at Lewis and in Worthen Arena both by a score of 3-0. The Flyers season was highlighted in non-conference play after beating No. 1 UCLA on Jan. 29 by a score of 3-0. The Flyers are led by Tyler Mitchem who has tallied 298 kills thus far and was tabbed to the All-MIVA First Team. Mitchem is the brother current of Ball State women's volleyball outside hitter Natalie Mitchem.
Scouting Ball State: The Cardinals have had a record-breaking season and have advanced to the semifinals of the MIVA Tournament since its induction in 1980 a total of 36 times. Ball State earned the No. 1 seed in this year's tournament and the right to host as the top seed after defeating Purdue Fort Wayne on April 9 in a 3-1 decision to claim the Cardinals first MIVA regular season title outright since 1997. Ball State made it to the semifinals of the MIVA Tournament after defeating the No. 8 seed Quincy on Saturday by a score of 3-0. If Ball State moves on to the MIVA Tourney finals it will be the first time since 2009. That year the Cardinals fell 3-0 to Ohio State in the title match.
NEW ERA: First-year head coach Donan Cruz has started his inaugural season off strong leading the Cardinals to one of their best showings in program history with an overall record of 21-3 and a No. 7 national ranking … The season began with two wins over then ranked No. 1 Hawai'i while also defeating nationally ranked BYU… Prior to taking over the helm of the Cardinals, Cruz was a four-time National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) National Coach of the Year at Grand View University … Just the fourth head coach in the storied history of Ball State men's volleyball, Cruz led the inaugural Grand View men's team to a 13-13 mark in 2012 season, on his way to compiling a 211-55 overall record with the Vikings … He concluded his Grand View career with the best winning percentage in NAIA men's volleyball history at .793.
ALSO NEW ON THE STAFF: Joining Cruz on the Ball State staff are Midwestern Volleyball Association (MIVA) standout and former Lewis University star Mike Iandolo and BYU men's volleyball alumnus Christian Rupert … Iandolo was a two-time All-MIVA First Team selection and spent the last three season as the head coach at the University of Charleston … Rupert helped lead the Cougars to a pair of appearances NCAA Division I/II Men's Volleyball Championship Match, and following a brief professional career, spent two seasons as a volunteer assistant at Princeton.
POSTSEASON ALL-MIVA: Senior outside hitter Kaleb Jenness was voted as the MIVA Player of the Year while also earning All-MIVA First Team honors for the third-straight season. Graduate senior setter Quinn Isaacsonalong with classmate opposite attacker Angelo Mandilaris were both tabbed to the All-MIVA First Team as well, marking it the second-straight season for Isaacson and the first for Mandilaris. Senior middle attacker Felix Egharevba was selected to the All-MIVA Second Team for back-to-back seasons and Donan Cruz was voted MIVA Coach of the Year.
IN THE NATION: The Cardinals remained at the No. 7 spot in this week's AVCA Coaches Poll. The highest Ball State has ever been ranked was No. 5 and that was in the final poll in 1995. Graduate senior setter Quinn Isaacsonstill ranks first in the nation among his setting peers with 11.43 assists per set while Ball State as a team also holds the top spot for that same category (12.87). Senior middle blocker Felix Egharevba is first in the nation in blocks per set (1.372) and Kaleb Jenness is fifth in attacks per set (9.10) and second in kills per set (4.72).
No. 1 seed Ball State (21-3) | No. 4 seed Lewis (16-11)
(Ball State is the No. 7 team in the country while Lewis is ranked No. 12)
Muncie, Ind. | Worthen Arena
Date: April 20 at 7 pm ET | Watch: ESPN3 | Live Stats | Tickets
Ball State vs. Lewis in the Tournament Results (Ball State leads 6-4, 1-2 Championship, 4-2 Semifinals, 1-0 Quarterfinals)
The Last Time: The last time Ball State and Lewis faced off in the Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association Tournament semifinal round was in 2021. The Cardinals played the Flyers in Romeoville, Ill. on April 17 losing that match by a score of 3-0. It just so happens that the last time Ball State won the tournament title they faced Lewis in the semifinal round defeating the Flyers by a score of 3-1 in Worthen Arena on April 27,2002.
Scouting Lewis: Lewis comes to Ball State after earning a five-set thrilling win against Ohio State last Saturday in the MIVA Tournament quarterfinals. Lewis made a comeback versus the Buckeyes after dropping sets one and two. The Cardinals won both meetings against the Flyers in MIVA regular season action this year winning at Lewis and in Worthen Arena both by a score of 3-0. The Flyers season was highlighted in non-conference play after beating No. 1 UCLA on Jan. 29 by a score of 3-0. The Flyers are led by Tyler Mitchem who has tallied 298 kills thus far and was tabbed to the All-MIVA First Team. Mitchem is the brother current of Ball State women's volleyball outside hitter Natalie Mitchem.
Scouting Ball State: The Cardinals have had a record-breaking season and have advanced to the semifinals of the MIVA Tournament since its induction in 1980 a total of 36 times. Ball State earned the No. 1 seed in this year's tournament and the right to host as the top seed after defeating Purdue Fort Wayne on April 9 in a 3-1 decision to claim the Cardinals first MIVA regular season title outright since 1997. Ball State made it to the semifinals of the MIVA Tournament after defeating the No. 8 seed Quincy on Saturday by a score of 3-0. If Ball State moves on to the MIVA Tourney finals it will be the first time since 2009. That year the Cardinals fell 3-0 to Ohio State in the title match.
NEW ERA: First-year head coach Donan Cruz has started his inaugural season off strong leading the Cardinals to one of their best showings in program history with an overall record of 21-3 and a No. 7 national ranking … The season began with two wins over then ranked No. 1 Hawai'i while also defeating nationally ranked BYU… Prior to taking over the helm of the Cardinals, Cruz was a four-time National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) National Coach of the Year at Grand View University … Just the fourth head coach in the storied history of Ball State men's volleyball, Cruz led the inaugural Grand View men's team to a 13-13 mark in 2012 season, on his way to compiling a 211-55 overall record with the Vikings … He concluded his Grand View career with the best winning percentage in NAIA men's volleyball history at .793.
ALSO NEW ON THE STAFF: Joining Cruz on the Ball State staff are Midwestern Volleyball Association (MIVA) standout and former Lewis University star Mike Iandolo and BYU men's volleyball alumnus Christian Rupert … Iandolo was a two-time All-MIVA First Team selection and spent the last three season as the head coach at the University of Charleston … Rupert helped lead the Cougars to a pair of appearances NCAA Division I/II Men's Volleyball Championship Match, and following a brief professional career, spent two seasons as a volunteer assistant at Princeton.
POSTSEASON ALL-MIVA: Senior outside hitter Kaleb Jenness was voted as the MIVA Player of the Year while also earning All-MIVA First Team honors for the third-straight season. Graduate senior setter Quinn Isaacsonalong with classmate opposite attacker Angelo Mandilaris were both tabbed to the All-MIVA First Team as well, marking it the second-straight season for Isaacson and the first for Mandilaris. Senior middle attacker Felix Egharevba was selected to the All-MIVA Second Team for back-to-back seasons and Donan Cruz was voted MIVA Coach of the Year.
IN THE NATION: The Cardinals remained at the No. 7 spot in this week's AVCA Coaches Poll. The highest Ball State has ever been ranked was No. 5 and that was in the final poll in 1995. Graduate senior setter Quinn Isaacsonstill ranks first in the nation among his setting peers with 11.43 assists per set while Ball State as a team also holds the top spot for that same category (12.87). Senior middle blocker Felix Egharevba is first in the nation in blocks per set (1.372) and Kaleb Jenness is fifth in attacks per set (9.10) and second in kills per set (4.72).
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's Volleyball
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/ Men's Volleyball
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