ST. LOUIS—Men's volleyball made their way to Kentucky to compete in the Campbellsville University Invitational. The Spartans first faced off with the tournament host, taking their second win over them this season.
The match got off to an even start as both sides traded points back and forth in set one. A block from Drew Iliff would give MBU possession, allowing them to run away with the lead. Down by six points, the Tigers called for a timeout, but it would not be enough to catch MBU. The Spartans took set one, 25-22.
Set two was a tighter matchup as the teams went point for point nearly the entire time. There was no more than a two-point lead on either side up until the very end. At 25-25, Jack Huizinga hit the service line, dishing out an ace, putting MBU at game-point. An error from Campbellsville would give Missouri Baptist set two, 27-25.
The third set seemed to be another close one early on, however, the Spartans eventually took control. They led by four when Campbellsville used their first timeout of set three. MBU was still ahead by four (15-11) when errors began to play to the Tigers' advantage. The score was tied at 17 each when another ace from Huizinga followed by multiple CU errors put MBU ahead, 20-17.
From there, the teams continued to trade possession until the Spartans found themselves at match-point (24-22). The Tigers quickly retaliated with back to back kills, putting them at match-point (25-24), and prompting a late timeout from MBU. A Campbellsville service error would even out the score for the last time at 25-25. Kills from Miljan Kastratovic and Luka Cajic sealed the deal, granting the Spartans their sixth consecutive win.
The Spartan front line had an impressive performance with three attackers finishing with double-digit kills. Freshman Miljan Kastratovic led MBU with a total of 12 kills, while outside hitters Luka Cajic and Steven Rodriguez followed just behind with 11 and 10, respectively.
Setter Jason Harman put up 40 assists, and libero Skyler Capllonch rounded out the evening with 11 total digs.
The Spartans finish up their time in Kentucky on Saturday, February 2. The No. 4 ranked team will see their first fellow ranked opponent of the season in the morning when they face off with (10) St. Andrews University (N.C.) at 9 a.m., followed by Cincinnati Christian (Ohio) at 3 p.m.
