ST. LOUIS – Missouri Baptist University men's volleyball dropped its Heart of America Athletic Conference opener Tuesday night, falling to undefeated Missouri Valley College in four sets (25-14, 15-25, 13-25, 20-25).

Luka Stepanovic paced the Spartans offensively with 11 kills and a service ace in the four-set effort. Johnathan Kreke added seven kills on a .312 hitting percentage, while Justin McGary and AJ Tufuga combined for 12 kills at the net. Setter Josh Kaemmerer dished out 25 assists in the loss.
 

Missouri Baptist came out sharp in the opening frame, hitting .389 as a team with just seven kills and zero errors. A 6-0 Spartan run midway through the set flipped the momentum, highlighted by kills from Stepanovic and Kreke. MBU controlled the tempo and capitalized on the Vikings' errors to cruise to a convincing 25-14 win.
 

The Vikings responded quickly in the second set, using a strong service run to create separation. Missouri Valley tallied four service aces and limited the Spartans' offense. Despite kills from Tufuga and Stepanovic, MBU was unable to recover from an early deficit as MVC evened the match.
 

Missouri Valley carried its momentum into the third, hitting .429 as a team. The Vikings' offense found rhythm behind 14 kills in the set. Missouri Baptist struggled to string together scoring runs, falling behind early and unable to close the gap.

The Spartans battled in the fourth, keeping the score tight through the middle portion of the set. Kills from Stepanovic, Kreke, and McGary helped MBU stay within striking distance at 18-18. However, Missouri Valley closed on a late run to secure the match.

Missouri Baptist will hit the road later this week to take on more conference opponents.