Ball State Upcoming Schedule
Feb. 27 - @ Brigham Young - 7 p.m.
Feb. 28 - @ Brigham Young - 7 p.m.
Mar. 6 - @ UC-Irvine - 7 p.m.
Mar. 7 - UC-San Diego - 7 p.m.
Behind a revitalized offense, the Ball State men's volleyball team snapped its four-game losing streak and earned two conference wins with sweeps over McKendree and No. 12 Ohio State over the weekend.
"We knew we needed to come out and have a big game," junior outside attacker Marcin Niemczewski said. "Everyone came out ready to go."
Needed both victories at Worthen Arena to stay in contention in the Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association, the Cardinals posted a combined .330 attack percentage against the Bearcats and the Buckeyes, finishing with 84 kills and 10 aces.
Niemczewski and senior Matt Sutherland led Ball State on offense over the weekend, combining for 50 kills, three aces, 20 digs and 13 blocks.
"[Sutherland] is getting as many swings as I am now, putting up huge numbers," Niemczewski said. "It's great that we get to bring our offense out on both ends and finish."
Despite three tightly contested sets, Ball State hit .359 against a McKendree team sitting in last place in the MIVA. McKendree's .333 attack percentage was .105 points higher than their season average, but Ball State's defense made stops when necessary.
The Cardinals' attack percentage against the Buckeyes dropped to .298, but the defense stepped up to hand Ohio State its first loss in league play.
Defensively, the Cardinals stepped up substantially Saturday after slipping away from McKendree's offense the previous night.
With two straight victories following a challenging stretch, the team seems to be back on track and looking to contend against the top teams in the MIVA.
Before returning to MIVA play, the Cardinals will compete in four non-conference road matches: two against Brigham Young University, one at the University of California, Irvine and one at the University of California, San Diego
"We have some guys who look forward to the big match; unfortunately that made our guys look past McKendree," head coach Joel Walton said. "It was nice to see our guys play with their ability to win some key rallies to put away Ohio State."
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