Ball State comes back in 3rd set for 4th straight sweep
By Matt Sharp / February 8, 2020Ball State Men’s Volleyball took a three-set sweep of Daemen Saturday, but final results are not always indicative of how closely a match was played.
Ball State Men’s Volleyball took a three-set sweep of Daemen Saturday, but final results are not always indicative of how closely a match was played.
Playing against a first-year team has its advantages. Coming off a six-match road trip against three ranked opponents, Ball State Men’s Volleyball used them in its 3-0 win over Urbana Thursday.
It was a road trip with mixed results for Ball State Men’s Volleyball. However, the Cardinals ended their six-match journey away from Worthen Arena on a high note Saturday with a 3-0 win over Saint Francis.
The old saying “practice makes perfect” paid off for Ball State Men’s Volleyball Friday. Coming off three consecutive losses, the Cardinals upset No. 7 Penn State in their fifth consecutive road contest.
Prior to Saturday, Ball State Men’s Volleyball had never been on the short end of the stick against the New Jersey Institute of Technology. However, the Cardinals’ 10-match win streak against NJIT ended Saturday, as the Highlanders were victorious, 3-0.
Tying his career high in kills with 22 in last Friday’s win over California State Northridge, sophomore outside attacker Kaleb Jenness set a new career high Thursday at No. 12 George Mason with 26. However, the Patriots (4-1, 0-0 MIVA) ultimately had the edge over the Cardinals, taking the match, 3-2.
In the forest of 6 feet, 4 inches; 6 feet, 6 inches all the way up to 6 feet, 8 inches, it’s 5-foot-10-inch senior libero Nick LaVanchy who speaks for the trees.
“They’re just a very good team. They do a lot of things well.” That’s what Ball State Men’s Volleyball head coach Joel Walton had to say about No. 4 UC Santa Barbara, who swept the Cardinals Saturday in the second contest of Ball State’s six-match road trip.
Notching 11 combined kills in last weekend’s season-opening victories, sophomore outside attacker Kaleb Jenness doubled that figure in Ball State Men’s Volleyball’s 3-2 win over California State Northridge Friday.
In the first-ever meeting between Ball State Men’s Volleyball and Queens, the Cardinals used depth to their advantage to sweep the Royals in night two of the Don Shondell Active Ankle Challenge.
In volleyball, many teams would describe a sweep on opening night as an ideal way to start a new season. Ball State Men’s Volleyball did just that Friday in a 3-0 victory over Belmont Abbey. However, head coach Joel Walton described his team’s offensive rhythm as “pretty mediocre.”
Coming off a quarterfinal exit in last season’s Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association Tournament, Ball State will rely on a greater sense of cohesion and an improved offense in hopes of gaining its first MIVA title since 2002.
The Cardinals had a 1-0 lead in the first set. They actually had a 1-0 lead in every set Friday. They just didn’t have the lead at the end of any of them. In its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2011, Ball State fell in straight sets (25-13, 25-18, 25-10) to No. 5 Nebraska.
Although the Cardinals do not have any players from Indiana on their roster, nine of the team’s 20 players are from Illinois.
Ball State Women’s Volleyball is heading to Lincoln, Nebraska, to take on fifth-seeded Nebraska in the first round of the NCAA Women’s Volleyball Tournament Friday at 7 p.m.
Monday is Amber Seaman’s birthday. She woke up a champion. The feeling she and Ball State Women’s Volleyball felt Sunday night can only be described as “pure joy.” That is what head coach Kelli Miller Phillips called Ball State’s 3-2 win over Bowling Green to clinch the Mid-American Conference Championship Sunday.
Mental toughness has been a theme for Ball State Women’s Volleyball. The Cardinals have dealt with playing down all season, and their 3-1 win against Miami (Ohio) was no different.
Fourth-seeded Ball State Women’s Volleyball advanced to the semi-finals of the Mid-American Conference Tournament Friday with a 3-1 win over Ohio.
The Cardinals sought revenge from a 3-1 loss to Central Michigan on the road Oct. 11 where a big factor was their .121 hitting percentage. They vastly improved in the rematch to earn a share of the Mid-American Conference West Division title for the third year in a row, hitting an even .200.
Northern Illinois was no match for the streaking Ball State, who won its fourth straight game on a 3-0 sweep.
