And so it begins...
Ball State kicks off the 2024 season with a match against an in-state D-III program with ties to Cardinals. Also, some pre and post-season notes from the MIVA.
Today is the day!
After 241 days of waiting, NCAA Men’s Volleyball is back! In an almost ceremonial way, there is just a single match today. Ball State will take on the Little Giants1 of Wabash College. Wabash is a D-III school that has had Men’s Volleyball since the 2021 season. Ball State, on the other hand, played its first Men’s Volleyball season in the 1963-1964 season (where they went 26-4-5).
It may seem to strange for a program of Ball State’s caliber to open their season against a D-III program, but I like this move for 3 main reasons.
Competitive time on the court is invaluable, regardless of the opponent. Ball State is not wasting their time and Wabash isn’t going to just roll over and give up. The Cardinals have some big shoes to fill after their 2023 graduating class, so this will be a good first look at this new team.
Community matters. Not only is this an intra-state matchup, but the head coach of Wabash, Ashaun Baker, graduated with his bachelors and masters from Ball State University. It is great to see these types of ties turn into matches. This will be Baker’s first match as the head coach of Wabash. Not only is this a good way to start a season, but a great way to start his time at this institution and set the tone for everything to come.
Exposure grows the game. Having a team with hopes of making it to the national championship go against a team many outside of Indiana have never heard of is great for the sport. Growing the game can look like a lot of things, but today it looks like Ball State vs Wabash. Hopefully this exposure inspires other institutions to sponsor Men’s Volleyball so that we can cheer them on for years to come. Who knows? One day Wabash could be D-I program hosting a newer program.2
In terms of projections, VBelo has Ball State as the heavy favorites (which isn’t very surprising). While the numbers may not be that interesting, I am thrilled that the first match data will soon meet our minds (and spreadsheets). Yes, I’m excited.
Match Recaps
No matches yesterday
Match Projections
Non-conference
Wabash (2%) vs Ball State (98%)
MIVA Pre-Season Poll & Post-Season Changes
Pre-Season Poll
Last month, the pre-season coaches’ poll was released for the MIVA. Ohio State is coming into the 2024 season as the clear favorite. The Buckeyes received all 9 first-place votes! Don’t worry, we only have to wait until tomorrow to see them in action for the first time.
In terms of action today, we will get our first glimpse of Ball State’s lone representative on the pre-season All-MIVA team: Tinaishe Ndavazocheva. The Outside Hitter from Masvingo, Zimbabwe will look to improve on his impressive 2023 season where he averaged 3.6 kills/set with a .328 hitting percentage.
Post-Season Changes
In news that came out just yesterday, the MIVA announced two changes to their post-season. First, the MIVA conference tournament trophy will be named after the legendary Ball State coach and volleyball supporter extraordinaire, Don Shondell. It is likely impossible to think of a more fitting person to name this trophy after. His impact to the MIVA and all of men’s volleyball is immeasurable.
Second, the MIVA tournament will look slightly different (which means I will have to change some code in my model in April.) The top 8 teams in the conference will advance to the playoffs (with 1 team missing the post-season). The higher seeds will host the typical matchups (1 vs 8, 2 vs 7, etc.). After the quarterfinals, the remaining teams will be reseeded so that the highest remaining seed will play the lowest remaining seed. The impact of this move is to reward conference records throughout the entire post-season and not just for the first matchup. Overall, this is an understandable move and one that I wouldn’t be shocked to see in other conferences. The 1-seeds have worked hard for their seed. They deserve to have that hard work mean something. The one thing that every team wants is a better chance at making it to the national championship.
Yesterday we had the Dinos and today the Little Giants. I’m loving these mascots!
This is the appropriate place to begin singing Circle of Life from “The Lion King”.
Here we go. The ljourney to 1st Saturday in May starts now.