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The 769 career wins for former Ball State coach Don Shondell produced many indelible moments throughout the history of NCAA men’s volleyball.
The Hall of Fame coach guided the Cardinals for 38 years before retiring in 1998 and remains the second winningest coach in NCAA men’s volleyball. Shondell, 92, passed away on Tuesday leaving behind a legacy as one of the sport’s greatest coaches.
Check out the top 10 wins for Shondell throughout his coaching career at Ball State.
10. Ball State sweeps George Williams for MIVA title
1964 MIVA Tournament finals
The win marking the start of Ball State’s MIVA dominance came just weeks after Shondell achieved his five-year effort to have his club team earn varsity status at the school. Ball State swept the three-time defending MIVA champions George Williams 15-10, 15-10 in the conference tournament finals to win its first MIVA title in program history. The Cardinals went 3-0 in the double-elimination, one-day postseason tournament, including a three-game victory against George Williams in its opening-round match. The team with this victory clinched a berth to the national college championship tournament, a precursor to the NCAA Tournament. It also was Ball State’s first of five consecutive MIVA Tournament championships — a feat that was not accomplished again in the MIVA until Ohio State from 2008 to 2011.
9. Ball State shocks No. 2 Long Beach State
1996 Volleyball Hall of Fame Classic
Shondell admitted that Ball State was not playing its best volleyball entering the Volleyball Hall of Fame Tournament. Yet, Ball State still pulled off one of the program’s biggest upsets as it beat No. 2 Long Beach State 40-30, 41-38, 39-42, 40-31. This upset occurred with the non-conference tournament using an experimental scoring format that featured sets played to 40 points with the serving team earning two points for winning a rally and the receiving team getting one point for a sideout. Jason Fehr in the victory finished with a team-high 24 kills and three aces, while future U.S Olympian Phil Eatherton contributed 15 kills and seven blocks.
8. Ball State beats Ohio State for perfect MIVA season
1979 MIVA regular season
Dave Mochalski delivered two aces against Ohio State as part of an 8-0 run to close out the fifth game and secure the MIVA championship for Ball State. The Cardinals entered this regular-season finale undefeated in conference play and needing a win to earn their first NCAA Tournament berth in five years. Ball State and Ohio State were tied 7-7 in the decisive fifth game when future Buckeyes coach Pete Hanson delivered a sideout kill that set up the Cardinals’ match-ending run. Hanson finished the match leading Ball State with 21 kills and added six blocks.
7. Ball State knocks off No. 2 Penn State
1994 Asics Volleycard Classic
A lengthy match that did not finish until after 11 p.m. ended with a Cardinals comeback in the decisive fifth game. Ball State fought off multiple match-points to force overtime and then defeated No. 2 Penn State 17-15 for the upset win at its home non-conference tournament. Greg Romano, who was moved to outside attacker for the match, finished with a team-high 23 kills. The two teams would meet a month later in the NCAA Tournament semifinals with the Nittany Lions winning that match en route to earning the national championship.
6. Ball State sweeps Ohio State to win MIVA
1972 MIVA regular season
Ball State on the road in a de facto MIVA championship match finished with a .329 attack percentage as it swept Ohio State 18-16, 15-12, 15-7 to earn the conference’s berth to the NCAA Tournament. With no conference tournament that season, Ball State entered its regular season finale needing a win after losing to Ohio State in five games the previous week. Future Ball State Hall of Fame inductee Dave Schakel finished with a team-high nine kills against the Buckeyes. In addition, the Cardinals finished the regular season at 20-1 and with this berth were able to compete in the NCAA Tournament that was taking place at Ball State.
5. Ball State upsets powerhouse UC Santa Barbara
1970 NCAA Tournament round-robin stage
Ball State was the only non-West Coast to appear in the inaugural NCAA Tournament and delivered a signature win in the round-robin stage. The MIVA champions upset UC Santa Barbara 15-9, 5-15, 15-13 for the program’s first victory against a West Coast team during the NCAA era. The Cardinals following the upset, though, lost in the semifinals and then lost the rematch to the Gauchos in the third-place match.
4. Comeback dethrones Ohio State as MIVA champs
1984 MIVA Tournament finals
Shondell pulled off one of the biggest comeback wins in program history to get Ball State back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in five years. Ball State overcame a two-game road deficit to beat the three-time defending MIVA champions Ohio State in five games in the conference finals. The Cardinals trailed in both the third and fourth games during its comeback win. Tom Pingel had three aces in the third game to help Ball State overcome a five-point deficit. The Cardinals also were behind 12-5 in the fourth game before rallying to force a decisive fifth game, which they then won 15-5.
3. Cardinals rallies to beat Buckeyes in MIVA finals
1988 MIVA Tournament finals
Ball State overcame a 13-11 deficit in the decisive fifth to beat Ohio State in the MIVA Tournament finals and clinch a berth to the NCAA Tournament. This victory occurred after the Cardinals won the MIVA regular season title the last two seasons but lost to the Buckeyes each of those years in the postseason. The Cardinals playing in front of a home crowd of 850 people had multiple players with at least 20 kills, including outside attacker Chris Beerman who had 21 kills.
2. Ball State stuns rival IPFW to win MIVA
1994 MIVA Tournament finals
It was the peak of the Ball State and IPFW rivalry. The in-state rivals met in the MIVA Tournament finals with multiple future U.S. Olympians on the court and two Hall of Fame coaches on the benches. It was a surprise lineup change Shondell made, though, moments before the match that contributed to Ball State upsetting No. 6 IPFW. Greg Romano was moved to middle attacker and finished with a match-high 15 kills in the sweep. The position change also helped the Cardinals limit the Mastodons to a season-low .082 attack percentage. The Ball State win secured the program’s first MIVA championship and NCAA Tournament berth since 1990. It also set the stage for IPFW days later to become the first non-West Coast team to earn an at-large bid to a men’s volleyball NCAA Tournament.
1. Ball State upsets No. 1 UCLA
1995 Volleyball Hall of Fame Tournament
Shondell years after his retirement called it the greatest win in program history. It also remains a feat no other Ball State team has ever accomplished — beating a No. 1 ranked team. Outside attacker Greg Romano had 17 kills on a match-best .714 attack percentage as Ball State swept UCLA 15-5, 15-12, 15-11 in the semifinals of the Volleyball Hall of Fame Tournament. The Cardinals entered this non-conference event 0-14 all-time against the Bruins dating back to their inaugural meeting in 1964. In addition, UCLA with a lineup that included future U.S. Olympian Jeff Nygaard had won 39 of its last 42 matches. Ball State limited Nygaard to six kills and a zero attack percentage in the upset win. Along with Romano, outside attacker Todd Reimer had a match-high 22 kills and added four aces against the Bruins.