ST. LOUIS, Mo. – For the second consecutive night, the Spartans left the Carl & Deloris Petty SRC with a sweep after making quick work of cross-town NCAA Division III school Fontbonne University. Solid all-around team play, and nine service aces propelled Missouri Baptist to victory, pushing them over .500 for the first time in 2020.
 
The Griffins put up a strong fight in the first set, keeping things close midway through. After a few Fontbonne errors, the Spartans found their groove and took six of the next seven points.
 
Up 21-16, Miljan Kastratovic proceeded to record a kill on three of the next five Spartan points top put away the first set 25-19.
 
Stephen Menzel got the start at Libero on Thursday and it paid off for MBU in the second set. The sophomore from St. Louis led the 25-16 victory with three service aces, two kills, and two digs.
 
The biggest story of the match was Job Faber's performance in the third set. The freshman did it all after subbing in as a setter, recording three kills, eight assists, three digs, one block assist, while hitting a perfect 1.000.
 
Faber's performance backed by Luka Cajic's three kills in the third set gave the Spartans a 25-18 victory in the third set and a sweep over the Griffins.

"Our servers and passers had another good night," said head coach Tom Young. "Stephen Menzel did well at the Libero position and Luka Cajic had a great serving night. It was also nice to see freshmen Job Faber and Thomas Beye step in and earn some points."

This was an all-around team victory as three guys recorded more than five kills while eight guys had one or more. Additionally, the home team combined for nine service aces, 29 digs, and a .338 hitting percentage.
 
The volleyball season rolls on in two days as the Spartans head to Marshall, Missouri to take on the Missouri Valley Viking Invitational. The first game is scheduled for January 24 at 4:30 p.m. against Cumberland University (Tenn.).