With Ball State battling with IPFW in the middle of set two, sophomore setter Graham McIlvaine overshot a set for sophomore Matt Leske that went right over the middle attacker's head.
Without a second to add it as another ugly error by Ball State in the match, Shane Witmer rose to the net from the left side at the perfect angle to put away one of his four kills in the match.
It may not have been pretty, but it did accomplish Ball State's intended result. That theme would stay true for most of the night.
In a match full of errors and miscommunications on both sides of the court, Ball State (8-5, 2-3 MIVA) worked its way past a struggling IPFW team to pull off a 3-0 (25-22, 25-22, 34-32) sweep.
The Cardinals seized control early in set one on the back of two service aces and strong offensive play by junior right-side attacker Greg Herceg. Down 20-15, Herceg put Ball State on a 10-2 run to take the game.
"I think they got uncomfortable whenever Herceg was behind the line to serve," coach Joel Walton said. "He had some good blocks and gave us some decent offense as well. Greg did a nice job."
Herceg hit .222 with seven kills on 18 attempts in his fourth consecutive start to add to another match of better offensive production by Ball State.
Larry Wrather led the drive with 14 kills, tying his season high, and a .321 attack percentage.
Herceg said Ball State's faster style of offense showed more improvement in its second week of use.
"It's all about experience," Herceg said. "Really the first matches that we ran it, the only practice we had was one day. Now that we've had a week or so of practice, it's a lot better."
Sophomore middle attacker Matt Leske carried the Cardinals defensively with a career-high eight block assists.
Ball State will continue a three-match home stand as it plays Mount Olive next Friday and Park next Saturday, both at 7:30 p.m.
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