Coach Joel Walton's solution for the Ball State University men's volleyball team's serving problems this weekend was simple, having the team do primarily short serves, instead of jump serves.
The end result was the Cardinals winning the Volleyball Hall of Fame Morgan Classic during the weekend, after defeating Rutegers-Newark University, 30-27, 30-18, 30-18, in the semifinals and Springfield College, in the championship match, 30-23, 30-19, 30-24.
Walton said moving from a jump serve to a to a short serve was an in-game move both times, due to the Cardinals having numerous service errors.
The Cardinals had 11 service errors in both matches, and averaged a .876 serving percentage.
Entering this weekend, Ball State averaged 15.5 service errors per match.
"Our serving [strategy] is a game-by-game, team-by-team situation," Walton said. "We were struggling serving early in the matches, and both teams, when we served short, broke down offensively."
In Ball State's first match, Rutgers-Newark had 26 attack errors and a .062 attack percentage. Prior to the tournament Ball State's opponents averaged a .179 attack percentage against the Cardinals.
The Cardinals had a season-high 15.5 blocks against Rutgers, and 14. 5 blocks against Springfield.
Entering the tournament, Ball State's season-high was 11 blocks in one match, and the team had two matches where it had more than 10 blocks.
"We played a good game and followed the scouting report," Walton said. "On defense we were about to smother them."
Outside attacker Nick Meyer was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player.
Meyer led the Cardinals with 21 kills against Rutgers-Newark and 15 kills against Springfield. Also, he tied for the team-high with 3.5 blocks and 10 digs.
"Nick was the benefactor of a good team effort passing both nights," Walton said. "He's a big offensive player for us, but he has had the [most] digs the last three matches and that has been at catalyst for our defense."
The championship marked the second time the Cardinals have won this tournament in five trips.
"We were the best of the four teams in this tournament," Walton said. "We played at a high level, and it was nice to see the guys play like that."
Since starting the season 1-4, the Cardinals have won their last five matches, and have lost one game during that streak.
"We've been building momentum," Walton said. "Our schedule just keeps getting harder and harder."
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