OTTAWA, Kan. – The No. 13-ranked Missouri Baptist University men's volleyball team returned to action in dominant fashion in a sweep against Ottawa University (Kan.). The Spartans set the tone early and held the Braves under 20 points in each set to notch win No. 1 of the season -- 25-15, 25-12, 25-18.
 
Missouri Baptist moved to 1-1 on the year and improved to 14-0 against the former conference foe since 2016. The Braves, who were looking to build momentum after a win over Westcliff on Friday evening, dropped to 1-2.
 
MoBap struck first in the first two sets and never surrendered the lead thanks to the dominance of outside hitters Miljan Kastratovic and Auston Bonte, who combined for 17 kills on 23 attacks. Bonte made it back-to-back games with a strong first frame, while Kastratovic put on a clinic in the second frame swinging a perfect six for six. Freshman opposite hitter Veljko Culibrk continues to make strong first impression with eight kills and another ace in two sets of action. The Braves tried to keep pace with the Spartans but were never able to truly challenge the Spartans who took Set One, 25-15, followed by a 25-12 Set Two win.
 
The Braves captured their first lead of the match with the opening point of Set Three. OU put up its toughest fight of the afternoon keeping with arm's reach up until the midway point. The Spartans then put the set to rest scoring 10 of the last 15 points. Junior outside hitter Michael Olson ended the match on a high note registering four kills on six tries.
 
MBU's defense played a big role in the victory holding the Braves to a .000% hitting clip in Set Three and .042 overall. After conceding 11 service aces to Missouri S&T in Thursday's loss, the Spartans passed the ball extremely well on Saturday yielding one ace to the Braves. MBU continued their roll over Ottawa with a 25-15 final set.
 
Miljan Kastratovic led all scorers with 12 kills (.500%), followed by Veljko Culibrk and Auston Bonte with eight and six kills apiece. Sophomore setter David Rudic posted 35 assists for 11.66 per set. Other notable performances included middle blocker Petar Lecic with three kills (.750%) and four blocks, and sophomore Noah Varga with a match-best 10 digs.
 
No. 13 Missouri Baptist will make their long-awaited return to the Petty SRC Tuesday night against Culver-Stockton College. First serve for the home opener is set for 7 p.m.