Ball State Collects Sweep Of Quincy

MUNCIE, Ind. - - Behind a career-high 12 kills from sophomore right side Greg Herceg (Lakewood, Ohio/St. Ignatius H.S.), the Ball State men's volleyball team scored a 3-0 (25-17, 25-18, 25-17) sweep of Quincy in Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association play Friday evening at Worthen Arena.

   With the win, the Cardinals improve to 7-6 (2-3 MIVA). The Hawks fall to 8-7 (0-4 MIVA) with the loss.

   In addition to his 12 kills, Herceg tied three more career-highs with five digs, four aces and a .421 (12-4-19) hitting mark.

   Redshirt junior outside attacker Dominic Spadavecchio (Palatine, Ill./William Fremd H.S.) and sophomore outside attacker Larry Wrather (Lake Bluff, Ill./Lake Forrest H.S.) each collected seven kills.

   Sophomore setter Dan Wichmann (Arlington Heights, Ill./Buffalo Grove H.S.) guided the Ball State offense to a .418 (38-10-67) rate of success, recording career-highs of 27 assists, four total blocks (two solo and two assists) and three digs.

   “Dan Wichmann came in and did a nice job running our offense tonight," said Ball State head coach Joel Walton. "We kept pressure on Quincy’s side of the net, and our defense was in the right place for much of the match.  I also though coach Furnish put together a really nice game plan for us."

   Freshman libero Tommy Rouse (Carmel, Ind./Cathedral H.S.) added five digs in the victory.

   As a team, Ball State limited the Hawks to a .133 (28-18-75) hitting mark. BSU also out-dug Quincy 20-to-15, while holding a 7.5-to-2 edge in total blocks and an 8-to-2 advantage in aces.

   Joseph Ascher paced Quincy with seven kills, while Kyle Volstad and Steven Battaglia added six apiece. QU's Tanner Wright turned in a match-high six digs.