ROMEOVILLE, Ill. – Lewis' sixth ranked men's volleyball team looks to bounce back from last weekend as it heads on the road this weekend to Ohio State and Ball State. The Flyers (7-4, 0-1 MIVA) take on the Buckeyes, who are tied for 14th in the latest AVCA rankings, on Thursday at 6 p.m. (CST) and wrap up the road trip at Ball State on Saturday at 6 p.m. (CST).
Last Time Out – Lewis dropped its MIVA opener to McKendree in five sets last Friday evening. The Flyers hit .254 for the match but committed 23 attack errors in the contest to just 16 for the Bearcats.
Ryan Coenen (Franklin, WI/Franklin) had 19 kills in the contest while
Tyler Mitchem (Bolingbrook, Ill./Bolingbrook HS) added 12 and
Dalen Instenes (Racine, WI/William Horlick) finished with 11 kills.
Polling Place – Despite the loss to McKendree, the Flyers remained sixth in this week's NVA/AVCA D I-II Top 15 poll. Lewis has been ranked for 159 consecutive polls. The last poll without the Flyers ranked in it was Jan. 31, 2011.
Helping Hand – Freshman setter
Kevin Kauling (Naperville, Ill./Neuqua Valley) is ranked fourth in MIVA in assists per set with 9.57. He is also 15th nationally in assists per set.
Ace Serve – The Flyers led the nation in service aces per set with 2.10 and have three players ranked in the top 25 nationally in service aces. Kyle Bugee is sixth with 0.583 aces per set, Coenen is 22nd with 0.432 per set and Instenes is 23rd with 0.429 per set.
About Ohio State – The Buckeyes enter Thursday's contest with a record of 8-3 after dropping two home matches last weekend. OSU was defeated by third ranked UC Santa Barbara 3-1 last Friday and then lost to fourth ranked and defending national champion Long Beach State 3-1 on Saturday.
Reese Devilbiss and Martin Lallemand lead the Buckeye attack averaging 3.44 and 3.31 kills per set respectively. Michael Wright is the quarterback of the offense distributing 9.83 assists per set while Luke Meidel is the leader on the back line averaging 2.15 digs per set.
Series vs. Ohio State – OSU leads the all-time series against Lewis 35-23 but the Flyers have won three of the last five meetings including both contests last season. Lewis rallied for a five-set win over the Buckeyes in Columbus last February and then swept OSU at Neil Carey Arena last March.
About Ball State – The Cardinals enter Thursday's contest against McKendree with a record of 7-3 and have won four straight after defeating Urbana and Daemen at home last weekend. BSU has played three ranked teams so far this season going 1-2 in those contests.
Kaleb Jenness leads the Cardinal attack with an average of 3.79 kills per set while Matt Szews is averaging 3.07 kills per set and Blake Reardon is averaging 2.42 per set. Quinn Isaacson runs the Ball State attack and is handing out 9.15 assists per set. Isaacson also leads the team in digs per set with 1.92.
Series vs. Ball State – Lewis holds a 30-24 advantage in the series with the Cardinals which dates back to 1994. The Flyers have won five of the last seven matches in the series.
Up Next – Lewis returns home next week to host Quincy on Wednesday (Feb. 19) at 7 p.m. and then will take on Lindenwood on Saturday (Feb. 22) at 5 p.m.
