No. 11 Men's Volleyball Outlasts No. 9 Park in Home Win

Marshall, Mo., (March 15, 2025)- The No. 11 Missouri Valley College men's volleyball team hosted No. 9 Park (Mo.) in a Heart of America Athletic Conference match, Saturday afternoon inside the Burns Athletic Complex.  The Vikings outlasted the Pirates in five games by scores of 25-23, 25-27, 25-17, 22-25, 21-19 in the Heart Game of the Week.

Missouri Valley got out in front at the start of the first game, as Sophomore Outside Hitter Davi Azevedo (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil), Sophomore Middle Blocker Joao Tavares (Sao Paulo, Brazil) and Junior Opposite Samuel Essilfie (Tema, Ghana) each had one kill to make it a 6-4 score.  Sophomore Outside Hitter Andrey Bastos (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) added the next two MVC kills, while Azevedo and Essilfie each landed one kill to help put the lead at 12-9.  Park responded, and won six-straight points to move ahead, 15-12.  The Vikings answered back, and won five of the next six points, including Senior Middle Blocker Arthur Martenelli (Curitiba, Brazil) teaming up with Senior Setter Lucas Rodrigues (Balnelariu Cambriu, Brazil) and Essilfie on a pair of blocks.  Martenelli and Essilfie also added one kill apiece as MVC went back on top, 17-16.  The two teams again traded points, as Azevedo and Rodrigues finished off late kills to keep the Vikings in front, 23-22.  Missouri Valley held off the Pirates at the end of the game, as two final Essilfie kills brought the score to 25-23 and a win for the Vikings.

Park jumped out to a 3-0 lead at the start of the second game, but back-to-back blocks from Essilfie and Martenelli, along with one kill from Essilfie sent MVC in front, 5-4.  The teams stayed close through the next stretch of play, as the score became tied at 9-9.  Missouri Valley then won four of the next five points, as Essilfie had one kill and a solo block, with a Bastos kill added in to help build a 13-10 lead.  Essilfie, Azevedo and Tavares each had one kill, while the pair of Azevedo and Tavares finished off a block to put the score at 17-13.  The Pirates went on another run, winning five-straight points to hold an 18-17 advantage.  Two kills from Bastos and one kill from Essilfie allowed MVC to reclaim the lead, at 22-20.  The Pirates then won four-straight, and held game-point, 24-22.  Another Bastos kill, and a Park error tied the game at 24-24.  However, the Pirates won three of the final four points played, and ended the score at 27-25, to even the match at 1-1 in games.

Play in the third game had the two teams close through an 8-7 Park advantage.  Martenelli put down one kill, and Essilfie added a solo block, as MVC went in front, 10-8.  Park won three-straight, and eventually the teams were tied at 13-13.  Missouri Valley went on a run from there, taking seven-straight points, and nine of ten points overall during a stretch of play.  Junior Opposite Luca Hasse (Paderborn, Germany) landed two kills, and teamed up with Martenelli on a block.  Tavares finished off three aces during the stretch, and Missouri Valley held a 22-14 lead.  One final kill from Tavares ended the third game, at 25-17, to put MVC back in front, 2-1 in games won.  Missouri Valley hit at a match-high .600 percentage in the game.

After Park worked out to a 5-3 advantage at the start of the fourth game, Missouri Valley followed with five-straight points, as Rodrigues had a solo block, and the pair of Tavares and Bastos added a block.  Bastos then finished off one kill, and MVC sat with an 8-5 lead.  The Pirates won the next four points, and eventually went ahead at 15-13.  Two-straight Pirates errors tied the score at 15-15, but five-straight points were won by Park to put MVC in a 20-15 deficit.  The Vikings won three-straight points late in the game, as Essilfie and Martenelli teamed up on a block, and Azevedo landed one kill to bring the gap down to 23-21.  Park finished out a win in the fourth game, 25-22, and forced a fifth game in the match.

The final game started with the Pirates gradually building up a 7-4 advantage.  Azevedo answered with one kill, and Essilfie used an ace to help tie the teams at 7-7.  After Park went in front, 9-7, MVC went on a four-point run that included one kill from Azevedo and a block by Rodrigues and Tavares, to send the Vikings ahead, 11-9.  After the score became tied at 11-11, the teams traded points.  Bastos had two kills, and a Martenelli kill brought the first match-point of the contest, at 15-14, with the Vikings in front.  Park responded, and held two match-points, including a 17-16 score.  Essilfie extended the contest with one kill, and Azevedo gave Missouri Valley another game-point, on an ace to sit at 18-17.  The Pirates then won the next two points, and held their third match-point, 19-18.  Essilfie again kept MVC playing, on another kill, and two final Park errors closed out the game for Missouri Valley, 21-19.  The Vikings won the match, 3-2.

Leading the way for Missouri Valley was Essilfie, who totaled 19 kills and added eight digs.  Azevedo had 14 kills and eight digs, while Bastos finished with 11 kills and seven digs.  Rodrigues led with 47 assists, and Senior Libero Leonardo Leao (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) had nine digs.  Missouri Valley finished with 17 total blocks in the match, and landed six aces.

Missouri Valley improves to 12-2 overall and 8-2 in the Heart.  Park drops to 14-4 on the season and 10-3 in the conference.

Up next, the Viking men's volleyball team hosts Culver-Stockton (Mo.), Tuesday at 7 p.m.  Missouri Valley swept the Wildcats on Thursday, in Canton, Mo.

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About Missouri Valley College

Known for its dynamic, richly diverse, and friendly educational environment, Missouri Valley College offers many opportunities to grow in mind, body, and spirit. Grounded in the liberal arts, undergraduate studies empower students to master interdisciplinary skills needed to succeed in a knowledge-based global society. MVC offers over 30 academic programs, study abroad program, extracurricular activities, and a wide variety of sports. The most popular majors include education and business, criminal justice and exercise science. Above all, Valley is committed to student success. For more information, call (660) 831-4000 or visit www.moval.edu.