Duel on the Court: Men’s Volleyball Scores Mixed Results Against Stanford

STANFORD, Calif. — Fifth-ranked Ball State (3-1) lost to No. 13 Stanford (1-1) Saturday evening in California.  

The Cardinals’ offense had difficulty gaining traction in the second match against the Stanford Cardinal, despite commendable performances from Rajé Alleyne and Braydon Savitski-Lynde. Alleyne topped the team with kills, amassing 12 and hitting .333 overall. He also contributed an ace and three block assists. Savitski-Lynde showcased an impressive .750 hitting percentage with seven total kills while also recording five blocks, equaling his career high. 

Ball State struggled to find its flow in set one, resulting in a negative hitting percentage of – 0.042. Despite the mistakes, the Cardinals remained competitive during the initial phase of the match. Nonetheless, after a 10-8 attacking error, Stanford began to distance itself, and the Cardinals could not regain control of the frame. The Cardinal secured set one with a score of 25-19, aided by a service ace delivered by Stanford middle blocker Kaumana Carreira.  

Stanford established another early advantage in the second set, but successive kills from Patrick Rogers leveled the score at 7-7. Ball State attempted to surge ahead, reaching its largest lead of the evening at 18-15 following a Stanford misstep. However, the Cardinal quickly responded, reclaiming the lead at 20-19 with an ace. Ultimately, Stanford triumphed in set two with a score of 25-23.

Set three proved challenging for the home team as Ball State initially led 6-3. Just when it seemed the momentum had shifted, Stanford clawed its way back ahead after several kills and an ace brought the score to 8-7. The remainder of the match remained close, with Stanford reaching its first match point at 24-23. Ball State responded accordingly, reaching its first match point at 25-24. It was a strenuous contest, and the Cardinals threatened match point on three occasions, but ultimately, Stanford completed the sweep with a 30-28 victory in the third set.

Ball State is now focused on their two home matches against No. 6 BYU on Thursday, Jan. 16 and Friday, Jan. 17. Thursday’s encounter will be Decades Night at Worthen Arena, followed by a beach bash-themed game on Friday.