MVB Prepares for McKendree and Lindenwood

Thursday, February 12

Muncie, IN

7 pm

Ball State University

McKendree

Buy Tickets

Photo by: Heather Parker

February 11, 2026 | Men's Volleyball

No. 9 Ball State Men's Volleyball (10-1; 2-0 MIVA) vs No. 12 McKendree (6-4; 1-1 MIVA) / No. 13 Lindenwood (8-1; 2-0 MIVA)
Match 10 vs. Queens	Thursday, Feb. 12 at 7 p.m. ET Live Stats \| ESPN+ \| Tickets
Match 11 vs. Queens	Friday, Feb. 13 at 6 p.m. ET Live Stats \| ESPN+ \| Tickets
Game Notes	Ball State \| McKendree \| Lindenwood
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Next Up - A Ball State Sports Link Documentary Series	Episode 1

This Week in Ball State Men's Volleyball: The Ball State men's volleyball program continues conference action this week as it welcomes No. 12 McKendree and No. 13 Lindenwood. Friday's matchup is Club Team Day, where players and coaches who show proof of membership gain $7 tickets to see the Cardinals vs. the Lions.

Last Serve: Ball State opened its conference schedule with back-to-back sweeps over Queens (Feb. 5 and 6). Patrick Rogers led the offensive effort with a total of 24 kills, six aces and 13 digs between the two nights. Ryan Louis added 16 kills with five blocks and four digs. On the defensive side, Braydon Savitski-Lynde tallied nine blocks versus the Royals, while Lucas Machado had 10 digs. Machado also guided the floor with 57 total assists. With the two wins, the Cardianals extended its home and overall winning streak to seven as it sits at six-consecutive sweeps and 2-0 to begin MIVA competition.

Rogers AVCA POTY Watch List: Senior outside hitter Patrick Rogers has been named as one of 15 members honored in the first ever watch list for the American Volleyball Coaches Association Player of the Year award. The inaugural watch list was compiled by the AVCA National Collegiate Men's Volleyball Awards committee. Semifinalists for the award are to be announced in early April, and the final four will be named prior to the 2026 National Collegiate Championship May 9-11. The 2026 AVCA Player of the Year is to be revealed during the championship banquet.

Sweepin' the Competition: Along with its seven-match winning streak, the Cardinals have won a total of 18 straight sets, beginning Jan. 22 versus Maryville to complete six consecutive sweeps. Ball State last reached that mark during the 1995 season, going 6-0 from Feb. 5-18. Since then, the longest stretch of sweeps happened in the 2006 season which saw 23 straight from Jan. 20-Feb. 11. The longest streak in program history stands at 33 consecutive sets won from Feb. 19-April 4, 1970.

Unbeaten at Worthen: The Cardinals have begun the 2026 campaign with an unblemished 7-0 start inside its home Worthen Arena. Ball State last saw this type of success at home at the start of the season in 2024, reaching 7-0 before eventually falling to Hawai'i in four sets. The team finished that year with a 15-4 record at home. Including last year's 3-1 Senior Day win over McKendree (March 29), Ball State holds an 8-0 streak on its home court. Since 2000, the longest home winning streak in program history is 26, spanning from March 16, 2001-Jan. 31, 2003.

10-1 start to the Iandolo Era: After taking the reigns of the program this past summer, head coach Mike Iandolo has marched the Cardinals to a 10-1 start in his first year in the position, with its sole loss so far being at the hands of No. 1 UCLA (Jan. 17).

Match History – McKendree: Ball State holds a 17-8 advantage in the all-time series, including a 11-2 record in matches hosted inside Worthen Arena. In 2025, the two teams split the series, with the Bearcats winning the first matchup on Feb. 22 in five sets (24-26, 25-23, 22-25, 25-21, 10-15). Ball State took the last outing with a 3-1 victory at home on March 29 for the Cardinals' Senior Day (25-13, 24-26, 25-23, 25-23).

Scouting McKendree: The Bearcats enter Muncie 6-4 on the season, including a 1-1 start to MIVA play after taking three straight sets over No. 14 Lewis (Feb. 4) before falling to No. 8 Loyola Chicago in three (Feb. 6). In ranked action, McKendree is 3-3 in 2026. The program opened its season with losses to No. 1 UCLA (Jan. 9) and No. 2 Long Beach State (Jan. 10), but responded with two straight over No. 13 Penn State (Jan. 23 and 24).

Graduate outside hitter Tyler Tripp has been a key contributor to the Bearcats' defense, winning back-to-back MIVA defensive player of the week honors this season (Jan. 20 and 27). Tripp ranks sixth in the conference in digs (1.93/set) and 23rd in blocks (0.63/set). On offense, Tripp is eighth in kills (3.17/set) on .275 hitting.

Middle blocker Rolen Lively leads McKendree at the net, averaging 1.06 blocks per set, ranking fifth in the MIVA.

The digging effort is paced by setter Nathan Flayter, who ranks third in the conference with 2.24 per set. McKendree has a total of four players who sit in the top 10 in this statistic.

As a whole, the Bearcats rank fifth in the MIVA in blocks (2.21/set) and first in digs (10.24/set).

McKendree's offense is led by outside Sam Hoskin, who ranks fourth in the MIVA in kills with 3.44 per set on .384 hitting. Hoskins shared the MIVA Co-Offensive Player of the Week honor with Patrick Rogers earlier this season (Jan. 27).

The team collectively sits at fifth in the MIVA in kills (12.82/set), third in assists (12.29/set), seventh in hitting percentage (.278) and sixth in points (16.29/set).

Match history - Lindenwood: Ball State owns the all-time series against the Lions with a mark of 25-5, including 16-1 in Muncie. In 2025, the Cardinals claimed both contests over Lindenwood, taking three straight sets (25-15, 25-17, 25-22) on Jan. 20 and topping the squad in four sets (25-18, 25-20, 19-25, 28-26) on March 1.

Scouting Lindenwood: The Lions have won eight straight matches this season after opening the campaign with a loss to No. 2 Long Beach State in straight sets (Jan. 9). Lindenwood began conference action last week with victories over No. 8 Loyola Chicago (Feb. 4) and No. 14 Lewis (Feb. 6). In total, Lindenwood is 3-1 in ranked competition, including a 3-1 win over No. 17 CSUN (Jan. 16). At No. 13 in the AVCA Poll, the Lions see its highest ranking in program history. Prior to Friday's meeting, Lindenwood visits PFW on Feb. 12.

Senior setter Zach Solomon made history by being named the AVCA National Player of the Week on Feb. 10, becoming the first player in Lindenwood's history to earn the honor. Solomon has also earned two MIVA Offensive Player of the Week honors this season (Jan. 20 and Feb. 10). In 2026, Solomon leads the league in service aces (0.81/set) and ranks second in assists (10.94/set). Both those statistics place Solomon third in the country.

Brendan Louthain leads the attack with 3.23 kills per set on .287 hitting, sitting seventh in the MIVA, while also ranking sixth in points (4.11/set).

As a unit, Lindenwood is first in the MIVA in aces (2.68/set), fourth in kills (12.94/set), fourth in assists (12.23/set) and second in points (17.71/set).

On the defensive front, Amir Grant ranks 12th in the conference in blocks (0.80/set) while Lincoln Geist ranks 10th in digs (1.67/set)

Combined, the Lions lead the MIVA in opponent hitting percentage (.204) while ranking ninth in digs (6.94/set) and sixth in blocks (2.10/set).

AVCA Top 20 Poll: Ball State entered the 2026 season ranked #16 in the AVCA National Collegiate Men's Volleyball Preseason Poll with a total of 144 points. After improving to 10-1 with sweeps over Queens, The Cardinals sit at ninth with a total of 301 votes. The only MIVA team placed higher than Ball State is No. 8 Loyola Chicago (6-4, 1-1 MIVA).