No. 10 BYU men’s volleyball falls to No. 8 Ball State

BYU men’s volleyball failed to complete its sweep over top ranked Ball State on Saturday, losing in 4 sets, 1-3.

Despite an exciting 3-2 win on Friday night, BYU failed to repeat their success the following night. The Cougars were looking to sophomores Miks Ramanis and Luke Benson for another pair of impressive showings, after both had 15 kills and scored a combined 45 points the night before.

Set 1

In set 1, BYU looked to be playing with the same swagger as the night before. The Cougars had a 15-9 lead at one point, before the Cardinals began to come back.

The set drew to a tight finish, at one point being tied at 22 a piece. Despite the Cardinals best efforts to get set 1, the Cougars finished strong, winning the set with a close score of 26-24.

Set 2

Set 2 was just as tight, beginning with a Ball State side that didn’t seemed could be stopped. The Cougars were able to come back and tie the set at 10.

The two sides would trade points before tying at 20. Ball State would close out the set with a kill from Zimbabwe native Tinaishe Ndavazocheva, winning 25-23.

Set 3

With the game tied at a set a piece, Ball State exploded in the third set, quickly jumping to a 5-1 lead over BYU. The Cougars tried to claw their way back into contention for the set, but any hopes at doing so faded as the service and attack errors added up in favor of the Cardinals, who would easily run away with the set, 25-19.

Set 4

Set 4 proved to be the end of BYU’s chances, despite a 2-0 start to the set. BYU fell behind in the middle, 16-11, and struggled to get back on level terms. A late set surge put BYU back in position to get even in sets, but a service error committed by Gavin Julien sealed their fate.

Despite the loss, BYU splitting the series between Ball State will likely bode well for them in the AVCA rankings. Ramanis also proved his worth for a second night in a row, tallying 20 kills on the night.

BYU will travel home to Provo, where it will face off against UCSB for a two game series in the Smith Fieldhouse.