MVB Travels to No. 13 Ohio State and Northern Kentucky

Thursday, February 19

Columbus, OH

7 pm

Ball State University

Ohio State

MVB Travels to No. 13 Ohio State and Northern Kentucky

February 18, 2026 | Men's Volleyball

No. 8 Ball State Men's Volleyball (12-1; 4-0 MIVA) vs No. 13 Ohio State (7-4; 2-1 MIVA) / Northern Kentucky (3-6; 0-2 MIVA)
Match 14 vs. No. 13 Ohio State	Thursday, Feb. 19 at 7 p.m. ET Live Stats \| B1G+
Match 15 vs. Northern Kentucky	Saturday, Feb. 21 at 5 p.m. ET Live Stats
Game Notes	Ball State \| Ohio State \| NKU
Social Media	X \| Instagram \| Facebook
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 hits the road this week for another pair of conference matches against No. 13 Ohio State at 7 p.m. and first-year MIVA member Northern Kentucky on Feb. 21 at 5 p.m. Action at the Covelli Center will be steamed on the B1G+.

Last Serve: The Cardinals advanced to a 4-0 start to conference play with two four-set wins over then No. 12 McKendree and No. 13 Lindenwood. Ryan Louis ended the week with a total of 28 kills, nine blocks and three aces. Wil Basilio set career-best kill totals on both nights, reaching 25 between the two contests while adding two aces and 11 digs. Lucas Machado controlled the floor with 81 assists while leading Ball State to a .406 hitting percentage versus the Bearcats and Lions. He also contributed 13 kills with 14 digs. The defensive side was paced by Will Patterson, who recorded 11 total blocks and Victor Scherer, who was credited with 22 digs, including a season-high 13 versus McKendree.

Machado AVCA National Player of the Week: Junior setter Lucas Machado was recognized on Feb. 17 as the American Volleyball Coaches Association National Collegiate Player of the week. He is the first Cardinal to earn the award since Angelos Mandilaris in 2022. In total, Ball State has had 12 players awarded for 15 honors in program history. Versus the Bearcats, Machado had 44 assists with six kills and seven digs while hitting .600. The next night versus the Lions, Machado tallied 37 assists to go along with seven kills on a .778 clip and seven digs. With 10.12 assists per set through the week, the junior led Ball State to an average hitting percentage of .406. Machado earns his second weekly award of the season, being named the MIVA Defensive Player of the Week on Feb. 3.

Scherer MIVA Defensive Player of the Week: Senior Libero Victor Scherer claimed his first career MIVA weekly award on Feb. 17, being named the defensive player of the week after totaling 22 digs versus McKendree and Lindenwood. His 2.75 digs per set average between the two contests ranked second in the conference.

Rogers AVCA POTY Watchlist: Senior outside hitter Patrick Rogers has been named as one of 15 members honored in the first ever watchlist 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.

4-0 Start to Conference: Ball State sits atop the MIVA as the only program undefeated in conference play. The Cardinals have reached four consecutive wins to open conference for the first time since 2021. With two MIVA matchups this week, Ball State has the chance to extend their mark to 6-0, last achieved during the 2016 season when the men's squad reached eight straight wins to start conference action.

Unbeaten at Worthen: The Cardinals have begun the 2026 campaign with an unblemished 9-0 start inside its home Worthen Arena. Ball State last saw this type of success at home at the start of the season in 2004, reaching 11-0 before eventually falling to Lewis in three sets. The team finished that year with a 16-1 record at home. Including last year's 3-1 Senior Day win over McKendree (March 29), Ball State holds a 10-0 streak on its home court.

12-1 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 12-1 start in his first year in the position, with its sole loss so far being at the hands of No. 1 UCLA (Jan. 17) in four sets.

Match history - Ohio State: Ball State has the advantage in the all-time series against the Buckeyes, sitting at 112-104-1 in contests going back to 1964. On Ohio State's home territory, the Buckeyes lead 56-37, although the Cardinals have seen wins at the Covelli Center in four of the last six matches. These two teams split the season series last year, with the Cardinals taking the first contest at Worthen in five, while the Buckeyes evened it with a win in Columbus in four.

Scouting Ohio State: The Buckeyes currently sit fifth in the MIVA rankings, beginning 2-1 with a three-set win over the Norse and most recently splitting its series against Queens this past week. At 7-4 overall in 2026, Ohio State is placed No. 13 in the ACVA ranking. Thursday will be Ohio State's fourth ranked matchup, falling to USC, Long Beach and UCLA earlier this season.

In the conference, Ohio State ranks second in kills (13.28/set), assists (12.33/set) and digs (8.89/set) while its .310 hitting percentage puts the program fourth. On the national level, the Buckeyes are in the top 10 in kills and assists.

Offensively, senior opposite Shane Wetzel leads the Buckeyes with 4.04 kills per set on .316 hitting. His kill average ranks second in the MIVA, while his attack percentage ranks 10th. Setter Daniel Henwood Rodriguez ranks second in the conference with 10.64 assists per set.

Defensively, middle blocker Eliel Salva-Torres leads the team with 1.03 blocks per set, ranking sixth in the conference. Libero Drew Hudson's dig average of 2.28 per set sits at fourth in the league.

Match history - Northern Kentucky: These two teams will meet for the first time Saturday evening.

Scouting Northern Kentucky: In its inaugural season, the Norse sees itself looking for its first conference win, losing to Ohio State and Purdue Fort Wayne in straight sets earlier this season. At 3-6 in 2026, Northern Kentucky has posted three-set wins over Thomas Moore (Jan. 23) and most recently against UMES (Feb. 12) and Central State (Feb. 13).

Junior outside Griffin Wheatley leads the attack for the Norse, averaging 2.56 kills per set on a .187 clip. His kill average ranks 18th in the conference while his hitting percentage ranks 24th. Matt Cosgrove follows with 2.22 kills per set, ranking 21st in the league.

On defense, middle blocker Adam Blair leads the team at the net with 0.77 blocks per set, sitting at 13th in the MIVA. The dig effort is paced by Wheatley who ranks 15th in the league with 1.56 per set and Trace Klausing who averages 1.52 per set to rank 17th in the MIVA.

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 12-1 with a pair of wins over McKendree and Lindenwood, The Cardinals sit at eighth with a total of 311 votes -- the highest of any other team in the MIVA.