LINCOLN, Ill. – No. 3 Missouri Baptist University Women's Volleyball extended its winning streak to 14 on Saturday afternoon capturing a pair of 3-1 victories in Illinois over (RV) Indiana University South Bend and Lincoln College. Playing on the road for the first time in nearly a month, the Spartans picked up their sixth win over an opponent ranked or receiving votes in the NAIA Women's Volleyball Coaches' Top 25 Poll.
MBU showcased its depth in the tri-match as sophomore
Shannon McLain filled in for an absent
Manuela Vargas, the reigning AMC Setter of the Week in five straight week. McLain, who played a huge role in the Spartans' national championship run last season, didn't skip a beat, averaging 12 assists per set against the Titans (16-4, 12-0 CCAC) and Lynx (3-13, 2-9 CCAC).
(3) Missouri Baptist def. (RV) IU South Bend, 3-1 (25-17, 25-27, 25-21, 25-22)
In MoBap's 3-1 win over IU South Bend, McLain turned to 2020-21 AMC Player of the Year
Giovanna Tapigliani early and often. Tapigliani established her presence with an impressive eight kills in the opening set to go along with three apiece from
Isidora Stojovic and
Sara Klunder.
The Titans bounced back in the next set and led by as much as four, although they allowed Missouri Baptist to stage a late rally. Following a 5-1 run, MBU had its chance to avoid a setback with set point at 24-23 but couldn't close it out. IU South Bend capitalized on two key MBU miscues for the 27-25 set win.
Set Three was close throughout with Missouri Baptist make another late run. This time, a 5-1 run for the Spartans was exactly what was needed to finish out the set. The Spartans scored on an IUSB service error, a kill and block from
Emma Lattimore, a Tapigliani kill, and a
Maria Hanusik service ace.
In the fourth set, third-ranked Missouri Baptist rattled off 10 points in 11 rallies to take a commanding 14-7 lead. Unfortunately, the seven-point cushion disappeared with a 7-0 run by the Titans. In a set dominated by runs from each team, the Spartans were the last to strike scoring four of the last five points of the match.
Numerous career highs were tied or surpassed by Spartans:
(3) Missouri Baptist def. Lincoln, 3-1 (25-12, 25-13, 24-26, 25-22)
Following the hard-fought win over IU South Bend, Missouri Baptist quickly put the host Lynx in a 2-0 deficit. Thanks to a collection of blocks (5), service aces (6) and a .400 hitting % in the first two sets, the Spartans coasted to set wins of 25-12 and 25-13.
In a back and forth Set Three, MoBap struggled down the stretch and was unable to cap off the weekend with a sweep. Despite the 26-24 loss in the third, several Spartans shined including
Liz van Houwelingen and
Carlee Wise. The former logged five kills, one block and one ace, while the latter recorded four kills and two blocks.
Returning to the match for Set Four,
Giovanna Tapigliani delivered the final blow for the Lynx with a set-high six kills and MBU's last three.
For the match,
Carlee Wise led all players with a career-best 13 kills, five more than her previous best. Other career highs included
Kaili Smith with seven assists and
Liz van Houwelingen, who tied her career best in kills with nine.
