While they didn’t completely handle their business this weekend, the BGSU volleyball team still does have a chance to make the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Tournament. BG finds itself on the outside of the MAC postseason, looking in on Akron, which also sits at an 8-8 conference record and owns the tiebreaker. 

The Falcons and Zips battled in their second-to-last series of play, Akron dominating the Falcons in the first game 3-0, and Bowling Green taking a reverse sweep victory on Saturday to solidify a split in their final home weekend of the regular season. Yet Akron holds the tiebreaker on sets won against BG, winning five in a row to the home team’s three. 

Simply put, BG needs one more win than the Zips this coming weekend. If Akron wins one, BG needs two wins. If Akron wins zero, BG needs just one win. If Akron sweeps, BG will not make it, but it still has to host the postseason. 

So, what does this mean for the team and Falcon Fans? 

This should be the one weekend of the year they root for the University of Toledo. 

Akron’s final series of the season is against Toledo, the current No. 4 team in the MAC, with a 10-6 record. Toledo is one of the best teams in MAC Volleyball, but has lost three of their last five and are most likely loaded for bear in their final weekend. The Rockets are still working for seeding, an outside chance at a first-round bye. 

Contrary to Akron, Bowling Green plays a far lesser team in Buffalo, the 6-10 Bulls, with a very outside chance at making the tournament, which includes zero wins for both Akron and BG. 

This is insanely unlikely, and thus Buffalo has very little to play for. If you had to choose which team to play in must-win situations, the choice is definitely Buffalo over Toledo.  

And most likely the first thing the Falcons will do after each match this weekend is check the score of the Akron vs. Toledo game, quietly pulling for Toledo for maybe the first time in their college career. 

This beneficial scheduling feels like the first thing that has gone the Falcons’ way in MAC play, which has included horrifying luck in injuries during the most difficult parts of the schedule. 

But Bowling Green and head coach Alex DelPiombo still do not control their destiny. The first-year head coach can only win games against Buffalo and hope that Toledo does enough to hang up the Zips and get the Orange and Brown in their own MAC Tournament.