Fresh off an invitational in Hawaii and before it begins league play, the men's volleyball team will play in the Rutgers-Newark Golden Dome Tournament this weekend.
After upsetting No. 4 Penn State in the Outrigger Hotels and Resorts Invitational last weekend, the Cardinals moved up one spot in the rankings to No. 6. They will defend their ranking Friday against East Stroudsburg (Penn.) in the first game of the tournament.
"This is the highest any team I've ever coached has been ranked," head coach Joel Walton said. "I checked with (assistant director of athletic communication) Chris Taylor, and we think the highest Ball State has ever been ranked is No. 5, back in 1995."
Heading into the Golden Dome Tournament, Walton said he is concerned about the team recovering from its recent trip to Hawaii. The Cardinals arrived in Muncie late Sunday night and leave today to drive five hours to New Jersey.
"I'm trying to give them as much downtime as possible between now and the match," Walton said. "I want to give them a chance to refresh and treat any injuries they may have so they'll be ready to step out and play at a high level."
When the Cardinals take the court against East Stroudsburg, they will do so virtually unprepared. Normally before any match, the coaches review tapes and information of opponents and put together their own extensive scouting reports to give to players.
Since East Stroudsburg is a small Division II school, Walton and his assistants have no video tape or information on the team. That's why, Walton said, the Cardinals have to concentrate on their own game.
"We have to focus on what's going on on our side of the net," Walton said. "We have to make sure we respect East Stroudsburg and we're ready for what they throw at us."
In the second game of the tournament on Friday, host Rutgers (1-0) plays Concordia (0-3), who Ball State has already beaten. Rutgers finished last season ranked No. 14 but has not made the polls this year. Ball State split a pair of 5-game matches with the Scarlet Knights last year.
If the Cardinals win Friday, they will play the winner of the second game. If they lose, they will play the loser. Walton said, however, that his team should be in the championship game of the Golden Dome on Saturday.
"I anticipate we'll play the winner (of the second game)," Walton said. "I'll be very disappointed if we don't play the winner."
Although he and his team are confident, Walton wants to ensure that the Cardinals don't get cocky and look past their first-round opponent.
"There's always a tendency to look past the opponent in games like this," Walton said. "We have to show up every match. It's cliche, but we seriously have to take every match one at a time."
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