St. Louis, MO --- The No. 2 Missouri Baptist Spartans took on the No. 7 Vikings of Missouri Valley College in a non-conference matchup. With the 3-1 (25-20, 25-17, 17-25, 25-14) win, the Spartans move to an overall record of 11-1.
 
Sophomore outside hitter Luka Cajic led the way for the Spartans with 16 kills and five digs, followed by junior outside hitter Steven Rodriguez who finished with 11 kills. Freshman middle blocker Gabe Norsigian got in on the action with six kills (.857 hitting percentage). Junior middle blocker Cameron Hibbler finished with three solo blocks, and assisted with two more. Senior setter Kyle Foley led the offensive effort with 38 assists, and three service aces.
 
The Spartans jumped out to a quick lead before errors allowed the Vikings to tie the score, 7-7. Two kills from Cajic followed by a service ace from Hibbler opened the Spartans lead, once again, forcing a Vikings timeout. Out of the timeout, the Spartans outscored the Vikings to take a 20-13 lead. However, the Vikings looked to make a comeback, capitalizing off errors from the Spartans to close the gap to 20-23. Lucky for MBU, it would not be enough as two kills from Rodriguez closed out the first set win for the Spartans, 25-20.
 
Missouri Baptist found themselves down early in the second set, 3-7. With Huizinga serving, the Spartans rattled off six consecutive points to take a two point lead. The remainder of the set belonged to the Spartans, as they would outscore the Vikings 15-10. Kills from Rodriguez and Cajic helped earn the second set win for the Spartans, 25-17.
 
 The third set saw both teams exchanging points until the Spartans fell behind, prompting a timeout. Out of the timeout, the Vikings scored three in a row, continuing to push their lead. The Spartans attempted to mount a comeback with a block from Huizinga and Hibbler, followed by a Huizinga service ace. Down 15-20, the Spartans struggled to find momentum as they were outscored in the closing moments of the set. A Spartan error followed by a service ace from the Vikings caused the Spartans to drop the third set, 17-25.
 
The fourth set proved to be similar to the third, as each team battled back and forth. With the score tied at four, Huizinga used a four-point service run followed by a kill from Cajic to force a timeout from the Vikings. The Spartans continued to push their lead, using more kills from Cajic and Rodriguez to take a 13-7 lead. With Foley at the service line, he successfully served two aces that were combined with a kill from Norsigian to push their lead even further. After another timeout from the Vikings, the Spartans looked to close out the match. A kill from Hibbler sealed the deal for Spartans, winning the fourth and final set, 25-14.
 
The Spartans return to action Tuesday, February 20, when they travel to conference rival Lindenwood-Belleville University. Game time is set for 7 pm.