ST. LOUIS – It was smooth sailing for Missouri Baptist Men's Volleyball on Friday night as the NAIA's 14^th-ranked team defeated Graceland University in straight sets, 25-14, 25-21, 25-9. Playing their third match in four days, the Spartans showed no fatigue as they near the end of a six-match homestand.
 
Missouri Baptist picked up its seventh sweep of the season and improved to 11-2 overall and 6-2 in the Heart of America Athletic Conference. The Spartans, which hit .463 for the match, also extended their current winning streak to seven matches.
 
Following an early 4-4 tie in the first set, the Spartans opened the floodgates with an 11-2 run. Contributing to the monster momentum swing and shutting the visitors was a quartet of blocks. MBU won Set One with ease, holding the Yellowjackets to a .028 hitting clip and just 14 points in total.
 
MBU and Graceland both had success offensively in the next set as each squad hit above .450%. The Spartans, however, were a notch above the Yellowjackets in that regard. Seven different MoBap players registered a kill in the set for a grand total of 16 and a .542 hitting percentage.
 
The Merzweiler brothers – Will and Kyle – kicked off the dominant third set with back-to-back blocks of GU's Levi Leonce. Super senior Will Merzweiler wasn't done there as he recorded a season-high four kills in the span of eight rallies to jumpstart an epic finish to the match. With Michael Olson at the service line, MBU scored 12 straight points that included five consecutive aces from Olson and nearly six in a row at match point. The 14^th-ranked Spartans coasted to a 25-9 win in Set Three.
 
Auston Bonte led the way in kills with eight and tied with David Rudic and Stephen Menzel for the team lead in digs. Sophomore outside hitter Michael Olson provided fireworks, particularly in Set Three, finishing the night with six kills and a career-high eight service aces. The eight service aces marks the most by a Spartan in a single-match since Kyle Foley in 2017 (9 vs. Clarke).
 
Other notable performances included Kyle Merzweiler and Will Merzweiler with identical attack numbers of four kills on five swings (.800). The younger Merzweiler (Kyle) registered a match-best five blocks bringing his weekly total to 21.
 
MBU will look to carry over the momentum into Saturday's Top-15 showdown with volleyball rival and No. 4-ranked Park University (10-2, 4-2 HEART). The two teams split in 2021, but Missouri Baptist has won in eight of the past 10 matchups. First serve for the marquee matchup is set for 4 p.m.