Division-I athletics are usually looked at through a lenses that makes it a job. Athletes perform rather than play, and the word game is a misnomer.
But after Ball State’s men’s volleyball team’s 3-1 (25-20, 25-17, 18-25, 25-20) win over No. 10 Penn State, Worthen Arena hosted a jovial atmosphere that had 20-something-year-olds jumping around like 6-year-olds in a moon bounce.
“That was fun,” coach Joel Walton said with a Cheshire grin.
The Cardinals enjoyed their fun at the expense of the Nittany Lions, who looked troubled and uncomfortable on the floor for a majority of the match.
In the first two sets Penn State made Ball State look like the No. 10 team in the country. The first time Penn State even tied the game after 0-0 was at 1-1 in third set.
“This is how we play,” junior setter Graham McIlvaine said. “This is how we know we can play every time we step out onto the court.
“This proves how good we are, and how good we can be.”
McIlvaine’s 39 assists and 10 digs for his third double-double of the season were only the tip of the iceberg in a gaudy statistical night for the Cardinals.
Ball State hit .379, a full .155 higher than its season average. Senior outside hitter Jamion Hartley led the way for the Cardinals with a match-high 18 kills and hit .368.
This weekend Walton started Hartley and moved senior Greg Herceg, who is third in the nation with 4.21 kills per set, over to the left side in an attempt to generate more offense.
“Two powerhouse hitters makes it a lot easier on me,” McIlvaine said.
Ball State came out and played like a team with nothing to lose, unleashing powerful jump serves that kept Penn State out of system.
“One of the reasons they are such a great offensive team is because they pass so well, so we knew we had to keep the service pressure on them,” Hartley said.
Ball State took the first two sets in dominant fashion, leading both sets the entire way.
In the third set the Cardinals started to look a little complacent and tightened up. This allowed the Nittany Lions to settle in and look like a nationally ranked team that has won their conference 27 out of the last 31 years.
The fourth set saw a sideout battle, with Ball State never being able to extend a lead.
With the score at 21-20 and Hartley toeing the line to serve for Ball State, the Cardinals strung to points together that elicited a timeout from Penn State. In the one minute and 15 seconds allotted, McIlvaine had one simple message for his team.
“I said, ‘Guys, push two points and we are going to beat the No. 10 team in the country,’” McIlvaine said.
With its first win over a ranked opponent since March 18, 2012 over then-No. 10 Ohio State, Ball State’s marquee victory has it teeming with the optimism felt after its 8-0 start.
“I’m just so excited,” Hartley said. “I think we can go even higher.”
