As it turns out, the Ball State men's volleyball team did walk away with a championship following the 2012 season.
Junior middle attacker Matt Leske won the Off the Block Fan Choice Player of the Year award on Thursday, topping Stanford's All-American libero Erik Shoji in the championship match, winning 207-166 in a nation-wide fan vote.
Leske competed against a field of 64 of the best men's volleyball players across the country. To get to the championship round, he defeated Princeton's Cody Kessel, UCLA's Thomas Amberg, BYU's Futi Tavana, BYU's Taylor Sander and Quincy's Steven Battaglia.
Leske's poll against Battaglia was one of the most suspenseful of the tournament. Voters made a late push in the final hour of voting to secure a win for Leske, as he ended the round with a tournament-high 950 votes.
Leske's average of 1.32 blocks per game led the Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association and was eighth in the nation last season. He was also a second-team All-MIVA selection.
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