ST. LOUIS – No. 8-ranked and top-seeded Missouri Baptist is heading back to the American Midwest Conference Volleyball Tournament final on Saturday with its sights set on a fourth consecutive championship. The Spartans swept their way past another AMC opponent on Friday afternoon, taking down No. 4 seed William Woods in the first semifinal by a score of 25-21, 25-21, 25-19.
 
With the victory, MBU improved to 25-5 on the year, marking the 13^th year in a row that the Spartans have reached 25 wins.
 
AMC Newcomer of the Year Tayler Neal had herself a day and was MBU's top offensive weapon against the Owls (24-9), tying a career-high in kills (17). Neal teamed up with fellow All-AMC First Team selections Gabi Jakubowska and Sara Klunder most of the match as the trio accounted for 36 of the Spartans' 46 kills. Jakubowska reached double digits with 10 kills on .304 hitting, while Klunder came up one shy with nine kills on .375 hitting.
 
Upset-minded William Woods claimed the match's first point and led early but would only savor the edge for a short period of time. Behind 6-4, Missouri Baptist strung together four straight points to turn the tables on the Owls. From that point on, the Spartans never trailed again in the contest.
 
Neal came through big in Set Two, where she stockpiled eight of the Spartans' 13 kills. The Drury University transfer had zero errors on 13 kills and 21 swings through two sets.
 
Junior setter Maiana Coelho led the Spartans in assists (26) on Friday and pitched in three points (2 K, 1 SA).
 
MBU libero Kaylee Hanger, Emma Lattimore, and Maria Hanusik held down the back row for the Spartans with 16, 12, and seven digs, respectively. Each recorded at least one service ace to aid in the Spartans' 6-3 advantage from the service line.
 
William Woods did edge the top-seeded Spartans in one stat category: blocks (7-5).
 
The Spartans will make their 16^th AMC Championship Final appearance in program history. As history repeats, it will mark the 14^th time MBU meets Columbia College in the championship match. The Spartans are 4-9 all-time against the Cougars in the title match. However, MBU has won the last three with a 3-0 victory in 2020-21 and 2021 and a 3-1 win in last year's final in Columbia, Mo.
 
Tomorrow's championship is set to begin at 11 a.m.