IU wins tournament to take No. 1 ranking

Ten wins and three ranked teams later, the IU men's volleyball club team is ranked No. 1.\nThe team beat the University of Arizona in an exhibition game on Feb. 7 and went on to win the Desert Thunder tournament later that weekend. After playing well in pool play on Saturday, the team was ranked No. 2 in the Gold Division heading into Sunday's elimination round. On Sunday, IU defeated U.C. Davis in the quarterfinals, a team that senior captain Jeremy Levy said would be a tough test before the tournament.\nEventually, IU went on to face Pierce, the No.1 Junior College team in the nation, in the finals. IU had already beaten Pierce on Saturday night. In the finals, Pierce battled with IU until the third game of the three-game series. IU barely won the first game 25-23, and Pierce took the team to their limit in the second game, beating them 36-34. But, IU came back to win in the third game 15-10 and captured the tournament championship and the No. 1 ranking in the nation. \nOn Friday, the Hoosiers officially got their No. 1 ranking, their highest ever. The team is now seeded ahead of both No. 2 Arizona and No. 3 Providence. \nJ.T. Gripe said the ranking is a reflection of the team's play. \n"I feel really good about our No. 1 ranking, but the thing I feel the best about is how we played in the tournament," Gripe said.\nGripe said the squad played the best as a team the whole weekend as they had all year. That pleased Gripe and teammates sophomore Dave Reid and Levy the most.\nReid, in his second year on the team, played a vital role in the tournament. On the court, Reid is an outside hitter, and he said that his main role in the tournament was to "provide offense and intensity." \nThe squad's team mentality was vital to the victory, Reid said.\n"We played better as a team then we ever have," he said.\nReid said the win over Pierce to clinch the tournament not only was a great victory for IU, but a great victory for the Midwest region as a whole. \nLevy said that for him the most exciting part of the tournament was having the opportunity to play Arizona in front of a packed house of 1,000 people. In terms of the tournament itself, Levy, as captain, served a dual role in the tournament. He had to focus on his role as a defensive player, and he also tried to keep the team focused on its goal. \nThis tournament gave IU an idea of where they fit in the seedings and where they stand as a whole. Levy said he knew all along his team had the ability to come this far. \n"I knew we had it in us -- we just all had to step up to accomplish it," he said. \nThe positive attitude and winning did not stop in Arizona as IU came home ready for their next tournament. The team remained hot in its next tournament, winning the Big Ten Regular Season Tournament for the second year in a row. IU went 8-1 in this tournament, hosted by Purdue University, with its only loss coming against Ohio State. IU went on to beat Illinois in the last game to take the title.\nThe Hoosiers will look to continue their unbeaten streak in their next tournament on March 1 and 2 when they host the Hoosier Illini Classic at the School of Health and Physical Education.