Ball State University
Harvard University
Men's Volleyball Opens Eight-Match Homestand This Weekend Against Harvard & Tusculum
January 19, 2023 | Men's Volleyball
No. 6 Ball State (0-2) hosts
Harvard (2-0) Friday, Jan. 20 &
Tusculum (2-3) Saturday, Jan. 21 at 7 pm ET
Series History: Ball State leads the all-time series with Harvard by a margin of 5-1
Series History: Ball State leads the all-time series with Tusculum by a margin of 1-0
Last meeting: Ball State 3, Harvard 2 in Cambridge, Ma. (Feb. 1, 2019)
Last meeting: Ball State 3, Tusculum in Muncie, Ind. (Jan. 15, 2022)
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CRUZ'S FIRST MEMORABLE SEASON: The Cardinals are looking to build off a historic 2022 season which saw Donan Cruz, in his first year at the helm, lead Ball State to a 23-4 overall record and the No. 2 seed in the NCAA Men's Volleyball Championship. BSU was also ranked third in the final NVA/AVCA Men's Division I-II Coaches Poll: the highest ranking in program history. Ball State was also the 2022 Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association regular season and tournament champions. Cruz was named the 2022 AVCA Coach of the Year last season and MIVA Coach of the Year.Â
ABOUT HARVARD:Â Harvard opens the year with back-to-back victories to start the season off 2-0. A win will give the Crimson their best season start (3-0) since 2013. Harvard is looking for its first win in Muncie having lost all three meetings. The Crimson have earned wins over Sacred Heart (3-1) and Merrimack College (3-0) so far this season.
ABOUT TUSCULUM:Â This marks only the second time in program history the Cardinals and the Pioneers. The last time these two teams met was last season in Worthen Arena as Ball State took down Tusculum in a 3-0 sweep Jan. 15. The Cardinals' returnees Kaleb Jenness and Dyer Ball led the Cardinals charge with seven kills each. As a team last year against the Pioneers, Ball State combined for an impressive .407 hitting percentage for the match. The Cardinals posted 14 service aces, which is the third most in program history. Tusculum will come to Ball State with a 2-3 record.Â
MIVA/AVCA PREASEASON PREDICTION: The reigning 2022 Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association regular season and tournament champions, the Ball State men's volleyball team was picked first in the preseason MIVA poll. In addition, two Cardinals were named to the 12-member preseason all-conference team — outside attacker Kaleb Jenness and middle blocker Felix Egharevba. Jenness was also tabbed as the preseason MIVA Player of the Year. The Cardinals were recently selected No. 6 in the preseason AVCA Coaches Poll.
CARDINAL STANDOUTS RETURN: The Cardinals return veterans outside attacker Kaleb Jenness and middle blocker Felix Egharevba. Jenness has been tabbed preseason All-MIVA three straight seasons. Last year, Jenness was tabbed the MIVA Player of the Year and the MIVA Tournament MVP while also tallying First Team All-MIVA honors. Jenness was also tabbed as First Team NVA/AVCA All-American.  Egharevba, a force to be reckoned with on defense, Egharevba was tabbed to the All-MIVA Second Team for the second time in his career. Last year Egharevba also earned NVA/AVCA All-American Honorable Mention. He ended last season as the 2021-22 NCAA Division NC statistical champion for blocks per set (1.41).
USA VOLLEYBALL WINS BRONZE: Ball State men's volleyball senior Kaleb Jenness along with his former teammate and alumnus Quinn Isaacson helped the USA Men's Volleyball team earn the bronze medal at the Pan Am Cup this past summer in Gatineau, Quebec, Canada. The U.S. led in kills (56-42) and had a .463 hitting efficiency behind Isaacson who dished out 86 assists in four sets (25-16, 25-15, 22-25, 25-21) against Chile.
NEXT GAME: After this weekend, Ball State continues its eight-match homestand when it hosts Queens University of Charlotte (Jan. 27) and Sacred Hearth (Jan. 28) at 5 pm ET and 7 pm ET, respectively in Worthen Arena.
