No. 3 Men's Volleyball Tops Kansas Wesleyan on the Road

Salina, Kan., (March 28, 2025)- The No. 3 Missouri Valley College men's volleyball team traveled to Salina, Kan., for a Heart of America Athletic Conference match with Kansas Wesleyan (Kan.), Friday evening.  The Vikings took control early, and earned a victory by scores of 26-24, 25-21, 24-26, 25-13.

The opening game began with both teams trading points, as Missouri Valley used two kills from Junior Opposite Luca Hasse (Paderborn, Germany) and a kill from Sophomore Outside Hitter Andrey Bastos (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) to keep the score tied at 4-4.  Kansas Wesleyan followed by winning four-straight points to hold an 8-4 advantage.  The Coyotes won six of the next eight points over the next stretch of play to extend the team's lead to 13-7.  The Vikings began to cut into its deficit, as Bastos landed two kills, and Freshman Outside Hitter Tymoteusz Zadeberny (Gliwice, Poland) and Hasse had one kill each to pull the team back to 16-12.  The two teams traded points over the next stretch of play, which featured three KWU errors and a kill from Bastos, but Kansas Wesleyan stayed in front, and held a 20-17 advantage.  Missouri Valley won five of the next seven points, with three kills from Hasse, and two Coyotes errors to tie the game at 23-23.  KWU held game-point but Bastos had the last three final kills to end game one, and the Vikings won the opener, 26-24.

Game two started with Missouri Valley going in front early, as Hasse had two kills, along with a kill each from Freshman Middle Blocker Martin Tseyera (Salta, Argentina) and Zadeberny, who then teamed up with Sophomore Middle Blocker Joao Tavares (Sao Paulo, Brazil) on a block to give MVC a 6-4 lead.  The Vikings followed by taking five of eight points midway through the game, which included two service errors from KWU, a kill each from Tavares and Tseyera, and an ace from Zadeberny, holding an 11-7 advantage.  The teams traded the next several points, and two kills from Tavares, and a kill each from Hasse and Tseyera kept Missouri Valley on top, 16-12.  The Vikings took three of the next six points, as Bastos landed three kills to put the score at 19-15.  Kansas Wesleyan was unable to work back into the game, as Hasse added two kills, and Tavares put down two kills and finished the game with an ace.  MVC won 25-21 to take a 2-0 lead in the match.

With the Coyotes needing a win in the third game to extend the match, Kansas Wesleyan moved in front early, 9-3. The Vikings used a block from Tavares and Zadeberny, two KWU errors, and a kill from Hasse to close their deficit to 13-7.  The Coyotes won three of the next five points to extend their lead, but Missouri answered back winning three-straight points to bring the gap down to 16-12.  Points were traded between the two teams through the rest of the game, which included two KWU errors, a kill each from Tavares and Bastos, and back-to-back kills from Hasse.  MVC worked back to tie the score at 24-24, with another kill from Hasse, and a kill from Tavares, who also teamed up with Zadeberny on a block. Kansas Wesleyan won the final two points, 26-24, and pushed the match to game four.

The fourth game started with the two teams playing close through an 8-8 score, as both Bastos and Tseyera had two kills each, and Freshman Setter Matheus Curi (Ribierao Preto, Brazil) and Tavares teamed up on a block.  Missouri Valley won six-straight points, as Bastos had three kills, Curi landed an ace and Hasse added a kill to build up a 14-8 advantage.  The Vikings began to pull away from there winning seven of the next nine points, featuring three KWU errors, two kills from Hasse, and an ace from Senior Libero Ruben Baquero (Madrid, Spain), holding a double-digit advantage, 20-10. Missouri Valley closed out the game, as they took five of the last seven points, with two kills from Zadeberny, a kill from Tavares and the final kill from Bastos to finish out a 25-13 win in the game, and a 3-1 victory in the match.

Leading the team was Hasse, who had 20 kills and eight digs. Bastos followed with 19 kills and eight digs, while Tavares added 10 kills on a 0.667 percentage. Zadeberny had six kills, landed two aces and eleven digs. Curi led with 48 assists and eleven digs. Missouri Valley finished with five aces and eight blocks.

The win moves Missouri Valley to 16-2 on the season and 12-2 in the Heart, while Kansas Wesleyan drops to 7-14 overall and 3-11 in the conference.

Up next, the Viking men's volleyball team will travel to Lamoni, Iowa, to play Graceland (Iowa) in a Heart match, Tuesday, starting at 7 p.m.

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About Missouri Valley College

Standing out as one of the most innovative and student-focused liberal arts colleges in the Midwest, Missouri Valley College (MVC) is committed to preparing students for success beyond the classroom. Through the Viking Voyage program, MVC prioritizes career readiness from day one, equipping students with the knowledge and skills needed to excel after graduation. Each of MVC's 30+ in-demand majors—including nursing, business, cybersecurity, computer science, criminal justice, and exercise science—integrates personal instruction, experiential learning, and professional opportunities to prepare graduates to thrive in a rapidly changing and globally connected world. At Missouri Valley College, higher education is more than earning a degree—it's a transformative journey that begins with the end.