Whether it was Julian Welsh-White, Elias Aparcedo or Matt Sutherland, opportunity struck for them this weekend.
All three players, while seldom used through the first two months of the season, made unexpected impacts for Ball State in two 3-0 wins over Mount Olive on Friday and Park on Saturday.
For Aparcedo, the sudden chance to play was a thrill he had waited for over a year to experience as a 2010 transfer from IPFW. He had gone 43 matches and 163 sets as an active player for Ball State without seeing action on court. For that period of time, he was regulated to a role as a bystander, waiting on the sidelines for playing time.
Aparcedo's chance finally came on Friday, as he played two sets and recorded 25 assists and three blocks. He combined with McIlvaine in the match to lead Ball State to a decent attack percentage of .250.
Aparcedo said the differences between his setting style and McIlvaine's may have disrupted timing on offense.
"Graham kind of holds the ball, and when it hits my fingers, it's gone," he said. "For some of the hitters, the timing was a little bit off."
Ball State's up-tempo offense remained in-play when Aparcedo was inserted into the Mount Olive match and didn't falter. In its third week of use, Ball State hit its highest attack percentage of the season with a final mark of .306 against Park.
"I think the tempo is coming along really well," Aparcedo said. "We're getting in there every morning, early in morning working on that. So in a couple more games I think we'll be OK for that."
Welsh-White, a freshman middle attacker, made his first career start against Mount Olive and gave the coaches a glimpse at where the team stands at behind its usual starters at middle attacker in Matt Leske and Kevin Owens.
With a final statline of five kills and three blocks, Welsh-White cited his blocking as the area of play he needs to improve the most.
Sutherland played extensively in both matches, showcasing his offensive skills on Friday and his defensive skills on Saturday. He hit .571 against Mount Olive to earn the team's highest attack percentage in the match. He added to it with five blocks the following night.
Both wins propel Ball State (10-5) into a extended break before it starts its West Coast trip with a match against Cal State Northridge on March 7. With only one home match remaining on the team's regular season schedule, coach Joel Walton said the team will need to keep playing better in each contest.
It could even be a chance for more bench players to show what they're capable of doing.
"The road is definitely going to test us," he said. "It's also going to be something where the depth on our bench starts to play a significant role. You're going to be looking for whatever tool it is on a given night that you can put out on the court that's going to help make your team successful."
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