ST. LOUIS – Top-seeded Missouri Baptist had its ups and downs in Thursday's AMC Women's Volleyball Championship semifinal but navigated its way to a 3-0 sweep of No. 4-seed Health Sciences & Pharmacy. The Spartans won by set scores of 25-19, 25-15, and 25-20.
 
With the straight-set victory, Missouri Baptist advances to the AMC Championship final for the second year in a row and 14^th time overall. As the tournament's top seed, the Spartans will host the title match on Saturday and face third-seeded Columbia College after the Cougars beat Williams Woods 3-1 in the other semifinal. The match is scheduled for 11 a.m.
 
MBU will look to improve its record in the AMC Final on Saturday with just one tournament championship in 13 previous tries. The first and only tournament title came in 2005 with a five-set win over Columbia. The Cougars hold a 10-1 advantage over MBU in the previous championship final meetings.
 
Working in the Spartans' favor is a 30-match winning streak inside Lacey Gymnasium that dates back to Oct. 26, 2018. The Spartans also sport a 2-0 record against the Cougars this season – one sweep in the fall (25-18, 25-19, 25-22) and one in the spring (25-13, 25-19, 25-18).
 
Outside hitter Isidora Stojovic tallied 13 kills, and opposite hitter Giovanna Tapigliani supplied another 12 to lead the Spartan offense on Thursday. The two seniors combined to hit .384 on the night, which helped bring up a relatively low attack percentage for the NAIA's top hitting team.
 
Middle blocker Sara Klunder continues to impress in her freshman campaign as a force at the net and a hidden gem from the service line. In addition to eight kills, the 6-3 freshman from Hudson, Iowa, registered a team-best two service aces and two block assists. Fellow freshman Shannon McLain once again hit the 40-assist mark right on the dot, setting up 86% of MBU's kills.
 
Reigning AMC Defender of the Week Ariana Macies was surehanded, as usual, leading the team in digs with 12 and a perfect 17-of-17 in serve receive.