ST. LOUIS--The No. 2 Missouri Baptist University rolled to a 3-0 (25-13, 25-13, 25-18) win over the Lynx of Lindenwood-Belleville University. With that, the Spartans improve to 7-1 and 1-0 in conference play.
 
Sophomore outside hitter Luka Cajic led the Spartans with 13 kills and four digs. Junior Steven Rodriguez followed behind with seven kills, four service aces, and three digs. Junior middle blocker Cameron Hibbler, freshman middle blockers Gabe Norsigian, and freshman outside hitter Sam Clifford each finished with four kills.
 
Senior setter Kyle Foley had a solid performance, finishing with 32 assists, three kills, five service aces, and five digs. Junior libero Colton Inman picked up six digs, as well.
 
The Spartans got out to a hot start in the first set behind tough serving from Inman and Foley, jumping out to a 10-7 lead. A kill from Rodriguez followed by two service aces proved to be too much for the Lynx, as the Spartans would go on to take the first set, 25-13.
 
The second set followed suit, as tough serving from Cajic and Inman gave the Spartans a 10-5 lead. More service aces from Rodriguez combined with good hustle from Foley proved to be the spark the Spartans needed to continue to push their lead. A kill from Foley followed by a Rodriguez service ace gave the Spartans the second set, 25-13.
 
Head Coach John Yehling started a new lineup for the third set. With the score tied 7-7, a kill from Clifford and two service aces from Foley started a 14-4 scoring-run, eventually pushing the Spartans ahead 21-12. From there, the Lynx capitalized off Spartans errors to get themselves back into the game. However, it would not be enough as the Spartans pulled out a 25-18 set win, taking the match.
 
The Spartans out-played the Lynx in multiple categories. MBU hit a blistering .406%, compared to just a .033% for the Lynx. Tough serving proved to be the key component for the Spartans as they finished with 14 service aces, holding the Lynx to only four.
 
Graduate Assistant Coach Michael Polizzi credited the tough serving of the Spartans, "We pride ourselves on being tough servers… Next week we play some good competition and I am excited to see how we can improve from here."
 
The Spartans return to action Monday, February 5, in a non-conference matchup against the Wildcats of Culver-Stockton College. Game time is set for 7 pm at the Petty SRC.