As women's volleyball coach Mick Haley sat in his office at the University of Southern California this week, he could still vividly remember his college career.
Riding his bicycle down McKinley Avenue, the future Olympic coach and his teammates spent afternoons at Ball State University in the early 1960s petitioning students and fighting to make men's volleyball a varsity sport.
It was a struggle that eventually paid off.
With Haley as a junior, the team received its varsity status for the 1964 season and finished its first season 22-7, including a sweep against Earlham College in the season opener.
Forty-five years since that inaugural season and first win as a varsity sport, Ball State is now one win away from another milestone: its 1,000th win.
"This is a program that really is Ball State," Haley said. "One-thousand wins show what other schools should be doing."
Having 999 all-time wins, the Cardinals will play the Milwaukee School of Engineering at 7:30 p.m. tonight at Worthen Arena.
If the Cardinals win, they would join UCLA as the only men's volleyball teams to win at least 1,000 matches in NCAA history. They would also become the third Ball State program - along with men's basketball and baseball - to reach the milestone.
Despite not preparing for tonight's match any differently, senior outside attacker Todd Chamberlain said throughout the week in practice, the Ball State players were aware of the historical significance of the match.
"It's pretty awesome. I've gotten to be a part of some really good wins since I've been at Ball State, and this is another one I can say I was a part of," Chamberlain said. "It's impressive that our volleyball program was able to pull this off. It just shows the tradition around here."
Since joining the Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association in 1961, Ball State has won 21 conference championships and reached the NCAA Tournament 15 times. The Cardinals have also had 68 all-conference players and nine players selected as All-Americans.
Chris Beerman - Ball State's all-time kill leader and a second team All-American in 1989 and 1990 - said the Cardinals' achievements are a result of former coach Don Shondell.
As the team's original coach in the 1964 season, Shondell coached Ball State for 34 seasons before retiring at the end of the 1998 season. In his tenure, the Cardinals reached the NCAA Tournament 14 times, including three of the four seasons that Beerman played for Ball State.
"You look at Don Shondell, he's the reason for this, and all the winning is a tribute to Don Shondell," Beerman said. "And spreading the male and female game throughout the Midwest is a tribute to him."
Beerman is now a women's volleyball assistant coach at the University of Kentucky. His father, Tom Beerman, also played for Shondell in 1962 and 1963 and graduated before the team became a varsity sport.
Since retiring from Ball State, Shondell has continued to live in Muncie and still coaches a youth volleyball team with the Munciana volleyball club. The former coach will also likely be in attendance for tonight's match against the Milwaukee School of Engineering - a Division III team.
Ball State (2-4, 1-0 MIVA) enters the match after sweeping Rutgers-Newark last week and was listed at No. 16 in the newest coaches poll.
Coach Joel Walton said it is important for him to play against Division III teams after knowing everything Shondell and the players of the 1960s teams went through to establish the Ball State program. The 11-year head coach was an assistant coach for Shondell and played at Ball State during the 1980s.
"In spending so many years with Don Shondell and having him tell me the history of volleyball and what it took to get our program going and what it's taken to get our program sustained over time, I don't look at men's volleyball or our program as us operating on the island," Walton said. "We need to make sure we take a leadership role in fostering support for our sport."
The Raiders have lost five of their last six matches, including getting swept against Loyola University.
Middle attacker Matt McCarthy said the team is excited for opportunity to play for the program's 1,000th win, regardless of the opponent's division or record.
"I'd rather have a big win. I'd rather have it against [No. 1] Penn State, but we will take whatever we can," he said.
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