BOURBONNAIS, Ill. – Marko Jovanovic and David Rudic helped No. 11 Missouri Baptist University to a four-set road win at (RV) Olivet Nazarene University on Saturday afternoon. Jovanovic tallied 18 kills and Rudic 46 assists as MBU won 23-25, 25-21, 25-19, 25-16.
 
(RV) Olivet Nazarene Recap
The Spartans got off to a slow start in set one and found themselves trailing 17-20. Veljko Culibrk registered an ace and a kill that sent his team on a 4-0 run that gave them the lead. The Tigers, however, found Brody McAfee four times in the final seven plays to earn a 25-23 win.
 
Rudic found a rhythm in the second set and found Jovanovic and Michael Olson for 12 out of the 20 kills in the set as the team rebounded with a .343 attack percentage. Alex Seyer had a long service run midway through the set that extended a 10-8 lead to a 16-8 advantage. The Spartans went on to tie the match 1-1 with a 25-19 set two score.
 
Both teams struggled with their offense in the third set and found themselves tied at 17 all. Will Byers served up an error before freshman Luka Stepanovic sandwiched two kills around three Tiger errors. Now leading 23-18, Rudic found Olson for the 24^th point and Jovanovic for the 25^th to open a 2-1 lead.
 
The fourth set was MBU's best, winning 25-16 to claim the four-set win. Rudic spread the wealth on nine assists in the set, the team notched three blocks, and hit .357 to end their Illinois trip at 1-1.
 
Jovanovic ended the day with 18 kills, Michael Anderson posted a team-high .636 attack percentage with eight kills on 11 attacks, and Veljko Culibrk and Olson tallied four blocks each.
 
Spartan Stat Leaders
Kills: Marko Jovanovic (18)
Assists: David Rudic (46)
Hitting %: Michael Anderson (.636)
Aces: Olson & Stepanovic (2)
Digs: Alex Seyer (13)
Blocks: Culibrk & Olson (4)
 
Records
No. 11 Missouri Baptist: 4-2
(RV) Olivet Nazarene: 2-3
 
Next Game
The Spartans open Heart of America Athletic Conference play at home on Tuesday, Feb. 11, against No. 10 Missouri Valley College. The opening serve in the Petty SRC is set for 7 p.m.
 
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