Ball State men’s volleyball has enjoyed considerable success in the confines of Worthen Arena since head coach Donan Cruz’s debut season in 2022. Over the past two campaigns, the Cardinals posted a 28-4 record on their home court.
By sweeping both its opponents in a doubleheader Wednesday, No. 11 Ball State continued its recent home success. The Cardinals are now 3-0 to open the 2024 season, with each win produced inside Worthen Arena.
MATCH 1: Wabash (W, 3-0; 25-14, 25-14, 25-15)
Ball State cruised to one of its most decisive victories in recent seasons in its season-opening win over Wabash last night, outscoring the Little Giants 75-29. The Cardinals enjoyed a similar level of success in the rematch, earning another sweep (25-14, 25-14, 25-15).
“The 11:00 start time was a little funky, and kudos to the guys for working themselves out of having a little slow start,” Cruz said.
The red and white debuted a fresh lineup in the season opener, featuring four players who had never previously started for the program. Cruz assembled another new group for the first half of the Ball State’s Wednesday doubleheader, with four Cardinals seeing the starting rotation who didn’t appear in the first match (Peter Zurawski, Keau Thompson, Eyal Rawitz and Ryan Bartz).
Thompson, Rawitz and Bartz are each returners who should see playing consistent time in the front row this season, while Zurawski — a freshman setter — made his career debut in the sweep.
Zurawski took on the setting duties for the entire match, after sophomore Griffin Satterfield led the offense on Tuesday night. Cruz said he and the coaching staff planned to feature two setters in its doubleheader as they continue to look to give in-match experience to their youthful roster.
The rookie setter recorded 28 assists, three digs and one kill in his first appearance at the collegiate level.
“I thought Peter did well,” Cruz said. “I thought he had to play through some nerves in his first college match, but he did well.”
With Zurawski directing the offense for the first time, Ball State’s hitters recorded 39 kills at a .382 clip. Sophomore Ryan Bartz led the Cardinals with 14 kills (at a .636 hitting percentage) and was followed by fellow sophomore Thompson, who slammed 11 kills.
The Cardinals’ defense produced four total blocks and dug up 27 attacks. Rawitz was the red and white’s leading blocker (three total blocks), and senior Lukas Pytlak recorded a team-high digs mark (10).
Although Ball State captured a 3-0 victory in under an hour and a half, the Wednesday morning match was more tightly-contested than the Cardinals-Little Giants clash the night before, as Ball State conceded 14 more points than it did Tuesday evening.
MATCH 2: Thomas More (W, 3-0; 25-16, 25-18, 25-14)
After making history Tuesday night by competing against Wabash for the first time in program history, Ball State closed out its opening home slate with a tilt against Thomas More — another school the Cardinals had never before faced in men’s volleyball.
Ball State tallied a win in its first opportunity against the Saints (0-1), downing the visitors (25-16, 25-18, 25-14) within two hours of its first match of the day. The Cardinals rallied to a decisive win, but it was not without early resistance from Thomas More.
“We just kind of made bad errors, and then they made some good plays, and we didn't really respond as quickly,” Cruz said. “You just gotta be patient, and when you're playing these teams, they're gonna give you a chance somewhere.”
Cruz sent out another unique starting rotation against Thomas More, the third different lineup in as many matches this season. The second half of the doubleheader featured the starting debuts for junior Aaron Hernandez, sophomore Nathan Goh, and freshmen Cameron Gray and Will Patterson.
Hernandez, earning his first start on his birthday, logged career-high marks in kills (eight), blocks (three) and service aces (four). Though Hernandez admits he battled nerves before the match, he cited his teammates’ support as a key to overcoming his worries.
“They were calming me down and letting me know that I'm okay,” Hernandez said. “Whatever happens, happens.”
Satterfield returned to the starting setter position against Thomas More after not appearing in the morning match. The 6’7” sophomore notched 30 assists, leading the Ball State offense to collect 31 kills at a .264 hitting percentage.
Ball State’s defense limited Thomas More’s hitters to a .027 hitting percentage and forced 18 attack errors. Gray paced the back row in digs (eight), and senior Rodney Wallace (four) was the top blocker for the Cardinals.
Gray led the Cardinals’ defense for the first time in his young career, which he called a “full circle moment.”
“It's a big thing,” Gray said. “This was my dream school. Last year I was in the crowd looking at them.”
After handling its first two opponents in its opening home slate, Ball State (3-0) will travel to No. 9 BYU (0-0) for a pair of matches this weekend — the first on Friday, January 9, and the second on Saturday, January 10. The Cardinals and Cougars have split their last four matches, with Ball State posting a 1-1 record in their two matchups last season.
“I try to treat every match the same,” Cruz said. “If we want to be playing in May, we’ve got to be prepared to be thrown curveballs all the time.”
Contact Adam Altobella with comments on X @AltobellaAdam or via email at aaltobella@bsu.edu.
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