Men’s Volleyball Falls In National Semifinals

Saturday, May 9

Los Angeles, Calif.

6:30 PM

Ball State University

26-5,13-3MIVA

UC Irvine

21-8,5-5Big West

Team	1	2	3	4	Final F
UC Irvine	25	23	27	25	3
Ball St.	19	25	25	19	1

The Ball State men's volleyball team competes against the University of California Irvine in the NCAA Semi-Final at the Pauley Pavilion in Los Angeles, California on May 9, 2026 at Pauley Pavilion. Photo by Bobby Ellis/Ball State University.

Photo by: Bobby Ellis/Ball State University

May 09, 2026 | Men's Volleyball

Box Score Photo Gallery

LOS ANGELES - - Fourth-ranked Ball State saw its run to a national title come to an end Saturday evening, suffering a 3-1 (25-19, 23-25, 27-25, 25-19) setback to UC Irvine in the semifinals of the National Collegiate Men's Volleyball Championship at Pauley Pavilion.

After dropping the opening set 25-19, the Cardinals (26-5) were able to even the match with a 25-23 victory in the second stanza. Unfortunately, the Anteaters (21-8) took a thrilling third frame 27-25, before winning the fourth 25-19.

In his final match for Ball State, senior Patrick Rogers led all players with 20 kills and finished the match hitting .304 (20-6-46). He also collected seven digs and a service ace. Will Patterson was second on the squad with nine kills, while hitting .533 (9-1-15) and collecting a match-high eight total blocks.

Andrej Jokanovic led a quartet of UC Irvine attackers with 18 kills, while William D'Arcy and Shane Aitken tied for match-high honors with 10 digs apiece. The Anteaters' backcourt effort, which included 48 digs, helped limit the Cardinals' NCAA-leading offense fo a .234 rate of success in the match.

THIS IS A DEVELOPING STORY AND WILL BE UPDATED