ST. LOUIS – The No. 1-ranked Missouri Baptist University women's volleyball team lived up to its billing during the 2021 Spartan Invitational this weekend, snagging a pair of wins over Top-25 opponents in No. 11 Central Methodist (Mo.) and No. 20 Lindsey Wilson (Ky.), as well as a good win over Xavier University (La.), a perennial NAIA National Tournament qualifier.
On Friday, the Spartans topped Lindsey Wilson, 29-27, 20-25, 25-16, 25-23, in the tournament opener and followed it up with a clean sweep of Xavier, 25-18, 25-17, 25-17, in the nightcap. No. 1 MBU wrapped up the final match of the Spartan Invitational with a gritty win against CMU, defeating the Eagles 25-22, 24-26, 25-21, 25-16.
With a 3-0 record on the weekend, the Spartans extended their winning streak to five matches and improved to 9-2 overall. They also preserved the perfect record in Lacey Gymnasium moving to 4-0 at home on the young season.
Several Spartans stepped up to the challenge in the highly competitive matches. For starters, 2020-21 AMC Player of the Year
Giovanna Tapigliani led the team offensively in each match posting 58 kills for an average of 5.27 kills per set. In the 3-1 win over No. 11 CMU on Saturday, Tapigliani tied a career in kills (23) and had several clutch points in the match.
Outside hitter
Isidora Stojovic had her breakout game on Friday against CMU when she notched 16 kills, more than doubling her previous season high of 7.
Tag-teaming with Tapigliani on the attack Saturday was
Raylyn Dodd, who recorded a season-high 15 kills and a match-best .538 hitting percentage. The Spartan offense benefitted from three stellar performances out of setter
Manuela Vargas. The Medellin, Colombia native dished out 58 assists on Friday vs. Lindsey Wilson and then surpassed the new season-high with 61 against CMU. The 61 assists are a new career best for Vargas.
Long rallies were a theme throughout the weekend and libero
Ariana Macies was busiest and most productive of them all. Macies registered games of 24, 26, and 32 digs for a grand total of 82 and an average of 7.45 digs per set. Joining Macies in double digit digs on Saturday were Vargas (14),
Emma Lattimore (10) and
Maria Hanusik (10).
Up next for the top-ranked Spartans is Culver-Stockton College at home on Tuesday, Sept. 14 @ 7 p.m., followed by another Tuesday match at Lincoln Christian University before kicking off their AMC schedule on Sept. 23.
