This weekend Missouri Baptist University's men's volleyball team travelled to Denver, Colo. to compete in the Johnson & Wales University Tournament. The Spartans took down the host in their first match of the tournament.
MBU defeated Johnson & Wales University in three consecutive games: 25-20, 25-18, 25-20. The Spartans were led on offense by their middle blocker combination of Shane Welch and Jordan Pinto. Welch recorded 10 kills with an attacking percentage of .750. Pinto added seven kills of his own. Robert Esser was also a major contributor for the Spartans, with 31 assists, three kills, and an ace. On defense, libero Danny Gruszczyk led MBU with nine digs. This victory improves Missouri Baptist to 17-5, while Johnson & Wales falls to 0-13.
The Spartans have three matches left in the Johnson & Wales University Tournament. Friday at 1PM MBU will take on Cincinnati Christian University followed by the NAIA Match of the week versus No. 2 Grand View University. The Spartans will wrap up play in Denver on Saturday against the University of California-Mered at 12:30PM.
