ST. LOUIS – No. 9-ranked Missouri Baptist University Women's Volleyball overwhelmed Hannibal-LaGrange in the 1 vs. 8 quarterfinal match of the 2023 AMC Volleyball Tournament on Tuesday evening. The Spartans also celebrated Senior Night before the game, sending the senior class off in style with a 25-15, 25-11, 25-5 sweep of the Trojans.
 
Missouri Baptist played like the tournament's top seed, handling Hannibal-LaGrange across the board as evidenced by a lofty advantage in kills (38-18), hitting percentage (.429 to -.035), aces (11-1), digs (44-28), and blocks (5-1). It marked the fifth time this season that the Spartans have held their opponent to a negative hitting percentage.
 
With the win, MBU secured a spot in the AMC Volleyball Tournament Semifinals and improved to 24-5. As the No. 1 seed, MBU is set to host the remainder of the AMC Tournament on Friday and Saturday, with its semifinal match taking place at 4:00 PM against No. 4 seed William Woods (24-8).
 
Gabi Jakubowska and Sara Klunder assumed their usual roles as the Spartans' top attackers on Tuesday evening. Freshly minted All-AMC First Team selection Gabi Jakubowska hit .591 for the contest and led all scorers, putting down 15 kills with authority. Celebrating Senior Night, AMC Player and Attacker of the Year Sara Klunder recorded nine kills, a .533 attack %, and two block assists.
 
Despite slow starts in the first and second frames, MoBap found its footing in each and did its damage in spurts, leaning on Jakubowska, who had six kills in each of the first two sets, and Klunder, who had four kills in each set. The Spartans established their rhythm in Set Two, playing error-free at the net with 11 kills, zero attack errors, and a match-high .524 hitting clip.
 
That momentum carried over into the final as MBU started the third on a 7-0 run. An HLGU timeout stopped the bleeding for one point [kill by Layla Horn]. However, MBU piled on another big run with nine straight points. By the time the Spartans reached the 20-point mark, the Trojans had mustered up just two points. No. 1 seed Missouri Baptist closed the match with a dominant 25-5 set win.
 
Several of the honored seniors experienced success on the court on Tuesday:

• Maria Hanusik notched five kills, two blocks, and one ace
• Kaylee Hanger registered 16 digs (5.33 d/s) and five assists
• Emma Lattimore also reached double digits in digs (10)
• Senior Tessa Schneider came in to set briefly in Set 3 and recorded two assists and her first career kill

 
Other notable performances included Sidney Hogan with a team-high 15 assists, seven digs, and two aces, Natalie Edson with a match-best three aces, and Luiza Arsufi with four digs, two kills, and one ace.