When men's volleyball head coach Joel Walton created his team's schedule, he was very careful about what opponents the Cardinals played and in what order.
"Our schedule right now has been real nice because every opponent that we've played in succession has been a little bit better than the previous opponent," Walton said.
The Cardinals (3-0) passed their first three tests of the season, Newman, George Mason and Rutgers, losing only two sets. The three victories have the Cardinals ranked No. 13 in the USA Today/American Volleyball Coaches Association poll.
Ball State now steps up its competition and faces No. 9 Penn State on Friday at home.
"We like to (say) that we're pretty young this year," Walton said. "Penn State has four guys that are brand new starters for them."
The Nittany Lions (2-3) are young, but have picked up two impressive victories early in the season. Penn State won at powerhouse Hawaii in its first game of the spring. The Nittany Lions also avenged an earlier loss to Ball State's conference foe Lewis by beating the defending national champion Flyers on Saturday.
Penn State was No. 7 last week, but lost at Loyola-Chicago, another school in Ball State's conference, in straight sets.
Walton said Friday's matchup is big not only because of the Nittany Lions' ranking, but because he considers them a rival.
"Any time we can get a win against Penn State, it helps us in a lot of ways," Walton said. "It helps us in the polls. Our alumni always feel good about it. I always feel really good about it.
"Even though it's a non-conference match, I'd certainly say Penn State is ... a team we look forward to playing every year."
Junior middle attacker Keith Kowal leads Penn State with 66 kills and a .634 hitting percentage that Walton called phenomenal. To stop Kowal, Walton said his team will have to serve tough and accurately, so Penn State's setter can't give him good passes.
After Ball State beat Rutgers in straight sets Saturday, Walton said he wanted consistency from his team.
Freshman outside attacker Nick Meyer recognized the need to play well throughout the match. He said consistency comes from staying focused.
"We get in a series of errors," Meyer said. "We just need to regain focus after we commit that error. We need to think ahead to the next play."
Meyer has been one of the most consistent performers this season for the Cardinals. He has led the team in each of its three games in kills, totaling 41 on the season.
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