GAME DAY LINKS -- 
McKENDREE vs. BALL STATE -- Saturday, April 11, 2015 -- 7 p.m., Harry M. Statham Sports Center
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McKENDREE SEASON STATISTICS
BALL STATE SEASON STATISTICS

(LEBANON, Ill., April 10)--The McKendree University men's volleyball team will host its final home match of the 2015 season on Saturday when Ball State University comes to the Harry M. Statham Sports Center. First serve is set for 7 p.m. for the Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (MIVA) match.

The Bearcats enter Saturday's contest with an overall record of 11-16. They are also 1-12 in MIVA play, and have had nine days off since their last match, a three-set loss at Quincy University on April 2. McKendree received a team-leading seven kills from sophomore middle blocker Wyatt Patterson (Flossmoor, IL/Homewood-Flossmoor). Freshman outside hitter Nolan Rueter (Burlington, WI/Burlington) added six attacks, while sophomore right-side hitter Maalik Walker (Shorewood, IL/Minooka) and freshman opposite Jared Wilcox (Warrenville, IL/Wheaton-Warrenville South) each chipped in with four kills. Freshman setter Pasquale Fiduccia (Hanover Park, IL/Glenbard North) handed out 21 assists while posting a team-best three blocks versus the Hawks.

A victory on Saturday would give McKendree a .500 record on its home floor in 2015. The Bearcats are 6-7 at the Statham Center this year, and have won four of their last five matches held in Lebanon. McKendree has not played at home since March 23, when it rolled to a three-set non-conference sweep of Fontbonne University. In its inaugural season of 2014, the Bearcats posted a 5-9 home record. 

Wilcox continues to pace the Bearcats with 280 kills and 26 service aces. Wilcox is sixth in the league in total kills. Patterson is second on the team with 220 attacks, and is hitting. 469 overall this season, which continues to lead all MIVA players. Freshman middle blocker Brendan Schmidt (O'Fallon, MO/Fort Zumwalt West) is one of five players in the MIVA with more than 100 blocks on the season, and his total of 102 ranks third in the league. Rueter sits among the top 10 in the MIVA in total digs with a team-leading 139. Fiduccia has overtaken freshman teammate Ian Zalewski (Orland Park, IL/Carl Sandburg) for the team lead in assists. Fiduccia has handed out 517 assists to date, while Zalewski is second at 472. 

Following Saturday's match, McKendree will close out its 2015 season on the road against a pair of nationally-ranked MIVA opponents. On April 17, the Bearcats will visit No. 5-ranked Loyola University in Chicago before wrapping up the year one day later in Romeoville, Ill., at second-ranked Lewis University. 

ABOUT BALL STATE
The Cardinals bring a 12-15 season record and a 5-10 MIVA mark into Saturday's tilt at the Statham Center. Ball State was in Columbus, Ohio, on Thursday for a conference match against Ohio State University. The host Buckeyes rolled to a three-set sweep of the Cardinals, sending Ball State to its sixth consecutive loss. Sophomore Brendan Surane led the Cardinals with 11 kills and a pair of service aces, while sophomore Connor Gross handed out 15 assists and junior Hiago Garchet dished out 10 in the effort.

For the season, junior Marcin Niemczewski leads Ball State with 215 attacks, while Surane and senior Shane Witmer are next with 152 kills apiece. Surane also has a team-best 29 service aces (which is 10th in the MIVA) and a hitting percentage of .432. Freshman Matt Walsh leads Ball State at the net with 122 blocks, a figure that leads the MIVA, while his 1.42 blocks per set is second in the league. In the back row, Senior David Ryan Vander Meer has collected a team-best 205 digs to average 2.28 digs per set. Both totals place Vander Meer second in the conference. Garchet has dished out 841 assists entering Saturday's match, which stands second in the MIVA.

This will be the second meeting of the season between the two programs. McKendree was swept in a close three-set match by Ball State back on Feb. 20 in Muncie, Ind. The Cardinals won by scores of 25-22, 25-22 and 25-23. Wilcox paced the Bearcats with 13 kills, while Rueter added nine attacks and a team-high seven digs. Niemczewski put down a match-high 17 kills while hitting .517 to show the way for the Cardinals.