Men's volleyball falls to Dayton in Classic

The fifth annual Hoosier Fall Classic preseason tournament gave volleyball teams from the Midwest the chance to shake out the rust accumulated during the offseason. Twenty-four teams from the Midwest came to Bloomington Saturday looking for their first tournament victory of the year.\nThe men's volleyball club team took to the court this weekend with the hopes of a successful start to the season to erase the bad taste left in its mouth after a disappointing showing in last year's national tournament. \nThe "A" team went into the nationals with a No. 3 national ranking but came out in 21st place.\nHowever, with a new season comes a fresh start to achieve the failed goals of past seasons.\n"Years past, we have peaked in the middle of the season and went on to have a disappointing showing at nationals," said senior Dave Reid, president of the club. "We want to peak at the national tournament this year." \nThe "A" team blew threw group play with a 3-0 record, thanks to victories over Earlham, Missouri's "B" team and the IU Alumni team. \nReid and senior Will Smith were instrumental in the success of the Hoosiers. \nThe team's record earned it a date with the Missouri "A" team in the first round of single-elimination. IU made quick work of the Tigers in two games to meet with Dayton in the semifinals.\nTwo teams looking to build off last year's performances, IU and Dayton had ambitious goals heading into the Hoosier Fall Classic. In the end, the Flyers were too tough for the Hoosiers, as they spiked their way to the finals in two games. \nIn the end, Dayton won a hard-fought battle with Illinois to take the championship.\n"We did OK today," Smith said. "We had a lot of new guys on the team, so we weren't sure how things were going to turn out today. In the end, we lost to a good team that went on to win the tournament, so we are on our way for this season."\nThe Hoosiers finish up their preseason schedule with a trip to the Illini 16 Tournament this weekend and the Spartan Back to the Hardwood Classic Oct. 23. \nEven though the Hoosiers came up short, they said they still have their eye on the prize -- a national championship in April.\n-- Contact staff writer Chris Engel at ccengel@indiana.edu.