FULTON, Mo. –
Gabi Jakubowska sent down 23 kills as No. 21 Missouri Baptist University held off a late push from William Woods University to earn a 3-1 road victory Tuesday night inside Anderson Arena. The Spartans took the match by scores of 25-16, 18-25, 25-20, 30-28 to improve to 24-5 overall and 15-1 in the Heart of America Athletic Conference.
As a team, Missouri Baptist hit .226 with nine aces and 60 assists while holding William Woods to a .214 percentage.
Jakubowska led all attackers with 23 kills, eight digs, and a service ace.
Allana Capella followed with 14 kills on .333 hitting and 13 digs for a double-double, while
Fernanda Perini added nine kills and three blocks.
Kassie Lee tallied eight kills, and
Elina Arsov chipped in eight more off the bench.
Valentina Navarro fueled the offense with 55 assists and five service aces, while libero
Julia Reis Pereira anchored the defense with 14 digs.
MBU came out strong in the opening set, jumping to a 5-0 start behind two service aces from Navarro and kills from Capella and Jakubowska. The Spartans never trailed, and balanced the offense with Jakubowska, Capella, Lee, and Arsov each tallying three kills in a 25-16 win.
William Woods answered in the second with its best offensive performance of the night, hitting .296 to even the match 1-1. The Owls turned a 13-13 tie into a 25-18 win with a 7-2 run, capitalizing on MBU errors and strong net play from Pamela Durazo.
The Spartans regrouped in the third, racing to a 4-0 lead on consecutive aces from Navarro and kills from Capella and Perini. After William Woods opened a 12-10 lead, MBU regained control with kills from Lee and Jakubowska to make it 19-16. The Spartans hit .281 in the frame and finished it off 25-20 after an ace from
Tiia Heikkinen and a Perini kill.
The fourth set proved to be a thriller, featuring 12 ties and five lead changes. WWU had set point at 24-22, but MBU battled back and forced extra time. Tied 28-28, Jakubowska delivered her 23rd kill to push MBU ahead, and Capella sealed the match with her 14th kill off Navarro's 55
th assist for a 30-28 victory.
MBU will wrap up the regular season in an important weekend. They will play MidAmerica Nazarene University, who sit third in the Heart standings, on Friday, Oct. 31, before wrapping up the season with fourth-place Park University on Saturday, Nov. 1, at 7 p.m. for Senior Night.
Grand View University currently holds first place in the conference at 16-1, and they play at Graceland University on Friday. The Spartans would need two wins this weekend and a Vikings loss to secure their first Heart of America Athletic Conference Regular Season Championship.
