As the season comes to a close, the men's volleyball team plays its last road matches of the regular season this weekend as it faces Loyola-Chicago and Clarke.
No. 8 Ball State (17-6 overall, 11-1 MIVA) has won three matches in a row and hopes to continue the streak against No. 9 Loyola-Chicago (18-5, 10-3).
Head coach Joel Walton said playing Loyola is important despite how tough it will be to pick up the road victory. He said the team will have many elements to overcome to find a good comfort level.
"(The match at) Loyola is really important and its hard to win in their building," Walton said. "There may not be an awful lot of their fans, but they are so close to the court. The gym we play in amplifies everything."
Walton said he looks at the match against Loyola as "a new start." The Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association tournament is getting closer and he said the Cards must not relax knowing the last lap is approaching.
"This weekend we start over and for the rest of the season we start over with every match," Walton said. "Every match we have something to prove. Every match we need to show up and be ready to play from the start of the match, not 10 points in or a game or two in. We've got to show up ready to get out of the gate and go from start to finish."
Walton said the team must not lose that focus or succumb to urges of relaxing. He wants the team to give everything it has, as there have been situations where every little bit has made a difference.
"We've got to stay focused at the task at hand," Walton said. "Because we're on the road this weekend, it's going to be vital that the guys are anticipating the play and knowing what is going to happen the next play.
"They have to be committed to laying their bodies on the floor or pursuing balls, because we're seeing that one or two plays are making the difference. So we have to make one or two more plays than Loyola to come out with wins."
Although Walton said the match against Loyola will probably be the hardest remaining on the season, he does not detract from the remaining three matches.
"Winning at Loyola this weekend would put us very close to clinching the conference title," Walton said."Both (Mercyhurst and IPFW) will be looking to establish some momentum and winning in our gym would be great wins for them."
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