After a win on Thursday night against Ohio State, Ball State was back in Worthen Arena Saturday evening for a conference matchup against the Lindenwood Lions. This is the Cardinals’ second matchup against Lindenwood on the season, with their first matchup in February resulting in a 3-0 sweep on the road.
Ball State nearly replicated that performance, defeating Lindenwood 3-1 (25-18, 25-20, 19-25, 28-26).
Earlier in the season, Ball State head coach Donan Cruz talked about the importance of conference games as the number one seed in the Midwest Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (MIVA) gets to host the conference tournament.
“We have to keep playing tough, and it seems like we get everybody’s best game”, Cruz said. “I think we can keep winning games if we pass well. That has been one of our biggest things. If we don’t pass well, it becomes hard for us to win games.”
Despite Lindenwood’s 0-5 conference record, they put pressure on the red and white in the opening set. They kept the set close while never giving Ball State any breathing room. They took a 10-9 lead in the set, and looked as if they would stay in control. Ball State senior opposite Raje Alleyne had other plans as he led Ball State back to take a set one victory, recording eleven kills in the set.
“It felt really good to be honest,” Alleyne said. “It felt good that my teammates trusted me to get the job done.”
From the middle to the end of set one, Ball State completely took over in the game. That play continued on into the second set, where the Cardinals showed why they are a top fifteen ranked team. They stayed in the driver’s seat for the entire set, and cruised to a second set victory, looking to put the cherry-on-top to a conference sweep.
A big reason for the Cardinals success in the second set was largely due to the efforts from junior setter Griffin Satterfield. The setter seemed to be everywhere on the court and recorded eleven assists in the set.
With the Cardinals being up 2-0 in the match, they needed one more strong set to put the Lions away. Lindenwood was not going to go out easy as they fought in the set to take a 16-10 lead. Despite a comeback attempt from Ball State, Lindenwood was able to take a set of their own and extend the game.
The Lions continued their play from set three into set four and kept a solid lead throughout the beginning of the set. They had a 17-14 lead late in the set, but Ball State put together three straight points to tie it. The Lions took a 23-21 lead in the set, and it looked like they were going to force a fifth set. But the late set efforts from the Cardinals outlasted the Lions and they were able to take an exhilarating fourth set.
When Ball State had their backs against the wall in the set, Cruz went to sophomore setter Peter Zurawski. It proved to be a good move as the sophomore setter played a huge role in putting Ball State over the top.
“It’s just amazing playing in this environment,” Zurawski said. “I was feeling all the love from the fans, and any conference game is going to be a big game.”
Ball State has two conference matches next week, with one coming against Quincy University on the road, the school that star Cardinal Raje Alleyne transferred from. Alleyne talked about what he’s most excited about for his return to Quincy.
“Just seeing the guys that I practiced with everyday,” Alleyne said. “Being able to play against them in an official match will be pretty fun.”
Contrary to their last matchup against Lindenwood, the Cardinals had to take out the Lions with a different attitude.
“We know that every team in here is good, so I would say just come out every day fighting and be ready to see what happens,” Zurawski said.
Ball State will be in action again on Tuesday, March 4th at 7 p.m. at Quincy University.
Contact Kyle Stout with questions via email @kyle.stout@bsu.edu or via X @kylestoutdailyn
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