Box Score IRVINE, Calif. - The third-ranked UC Irvine men's volleyball team rebounded from a tough five-set loss by picking up its fifth sweep of the season with a 25-23, 25-15, 25-20 win over No. 10 Ball State Thursday evening at Crawford Court.
 
The Anteaters (12-5) hit .357 in the match, while holding the Cardinals to a .165 hitting percentage. They also owned a 9-to-4 advantage in team blocks.
 
Freshman Joel Schneidmiller led the way with 10 kills and only one error on 15 swings. His .600 clip was a season-best when recording at least 10 kills. Schneidmiller added six block assists and five digs.
 
Senior Aaron Koubi and junior Karl Apfelbach also tallied nine kills each, while sophomore Scott Stadick and redshirt freshman Austin Wilmot contributed six kills and four blocks apiece. Stadick finished the night hitting .667 (6-0-9). Junior Dante Chakravorti directed the offense with 33 assists.
 
UC Irvine took a 10-8 lead on kill from Apfelbach in the first set. The 'Eaters stayed out front and used a 4-1 run, capped by a Schneidmiller ace, to pull ahead, 20-15. Ball State countered with a 5-0 spurt to knot the score at 20-all. The Anteaters then sided out and it proceeded to go back-and-forth until Schneidmiller put down his fifth kill, and followed with a double block alongside Wilmot, to secure the 25-23 win.
 
In set two, the 'Eaters broke an early 3-3 deadlock by winning five of the next six points for an 8-4 advantage. Ball State eventually came back within two before UC Irvine reeled off three-straight to go up, 14-9. The Anteaters were not threatened the remainder of the set as they ran away with the 25-15 victory.
 
It was a seesaw battle early in the third frame with five ties, until back-to-back kills from Apfelbach and Stadick sparked a 4-0 rally that put UCI out front for good at 11-7. The Cardinals were able to close the gap to two on three occasions, but the 'Eaters had an answer every time and went up by as many as six in the 25-20 win.
 
Ball State (11-8) was led by Matt Walsh's eight kills and four blocks.
 
UC Irvine is back in action on Saturday, March 10, with a 7 p.m. non-conference road match at Stanford.