No. 6 Men's Volleyball Tops Ottawa in Five Games on the Road to Close Regular Season

Ottawa, Kan., (April 7, 2026)- The No. 6 Missouri Valley College men's volleyball team finished its regular season with a road Heart of America Athletic Conference match against Ottawa (Kan.) Tuesday evening in Ottawa, Kan.  The Vikings outlasted the Braves by scores of 25-18, 25-27, 25-20, 27-29, 15-12.

The first game started with Missouri Valley going in front early, winning the opening three points, as Senior Opposite Luca Hasse (Paderborn, Germany)  landed two kills, and teamed up with Senior Middle Blocker Arthur Martenelli (Curitiba, Brazil) on a block to make it a 3-0 score.  The Vikings extended their lead taking six of the next nine points, which included a kill and a block from Junior Middle Blocker Joao Tavares (Parana, Brazil), and a kill each from Hasse, Junior Outside Hitter Frederico Baptista (Esmoriz, Portugal), and Freshman Outside Hitter Loan Fargier (France) to hold a 9-4 lead.  Missouri Valley used four Ottawa errors, a kill each from Martenelli and Baptista, and a block from Hasse and Tavares to stay ahead, 16-11.  The two teams traded points through the next stretch of play.  The Vikings followed by winning six of the next seven points, featuring an ace and a kill from Martenelli, who also teamed up with Hasse on a block, and a kill each from Baptista and Hasse to make it a game-point.  A final kill from Baptista helped Missouri Valley close out a 25-18 win in the opener. 

The second game began with Ottawa taking an early lead, 4-2.  Missouri Valley responded winning seven of the next nine points, using four OU errors, a block from Freshman Setter Leonardo Poiatti (Sao Paulo, Brazil) and Tavares, a kill from Hasse, and a solo block from Fargier to move in front, 9-6.  The Braves answered back with a run to tie the game at 12-12.  The two teams traded points through the next stretch of play, which included two kills from Hasse, and one kill each from Baptista, Tavares, and Martenelli, and the score was tied 19-19.  Hasse landed the next kill for the Vikings, but Ottawa won the next three points to hold a 22-20 advantage.  Missouri Valley used four OU errors and a kill from Hasse to tie the score once again, 25-25, but the Braves won the next two points to end game two, 27-25, and tie the match 1-1 in games.

The third game started with both teams trading points through a 4-4 score, but Ottawa won three-straight points to put the score at 7-4.  Missouri Valley used two kills from Fagier and a kill apiece from Baptista and Hasse to close the gap down to 10-9.  Points were traded through the next several points, where Tavares landed a kill, and teamed up with Poiatti on a block, and Freshman Outside Hitter Bart Mulder (Hoogeveen, Netherlands) added two kills during the run to tie the game back at 14-14.  Ottawa used two MVC errors to move in front, but three kills from Hasse tied the score, 17-17.  The Braves won the next three points to hold a brief lead, but the Vikings answered back with a long run, winning the final eight-straight points, as Tavares had three kills and teamed up with Poiatti on a block, and Hasse added kill and ace.  Missouri Valley finished off the third game, 25-20, taking a 2-1 lead in the match.

Missouri Valley led early in the fourth game, as Martenelli and Hasse put down a block, Junior Outside Hitter Pierro Porras (Lima, Peru) had two kills, Fagier and Tavares added a kill apiece, and Freshman Outside Hitter Timothee Carpentier (Aix-en-Provence, France) landed an ace to make it a 7-5 score.  Ottawa responded by winning five-straight points to go on top, 9-8.  The two teams exchanged points through a 14-14 score, which included a kill each from Poiatti and Fargier, along with two kills from Hasse, and two OU errors.  The Braves won the next three points to hold a 17-14 advantage, but the Vikings followed by taking six of the next seven points to tie the game and move ahead, 20-18.  Hasse and Fargier added the next two kills for MVC, however Ottawa worked back to tie the game at 23-23.  Hasse had another kill to put the team at match-point, but the Braves extended the game and had several game points.  Ottawa eventually won the final two points to force a fifth game with a 29-27 win.

The final game started with teams trading points through a 5-5 score, where Fargier, Tavares, Hasse and Mulder added a kill apiece.  Missouri Valley won five of the next seven points, which included an ace from Sophomore Libero Bernardo Wolf Roese (Nova Petropolis, Brazil), two OU errors, and a kill each from Martinelli and Hasse to move in front, 10-7.  Missouri Valley used a kill apiece from Hasse and Tavares to extend the lead 13-10, but Ottawa worked back to cut its deficit down to 13-12.  However, a Braves error and a final kill from Fargier closed a 15-12 win in the game, and a victory in the match.

Hasse led with a season-high 27 kills, six digs and two aces.  Fargier followed with a double-double of 12 kills and 17 digs, while Tavares had 10 kills and four blocks.  Poiatti led with 41 assists, and Junior Libero Thales Thomas (Sao Paulo, Brazil) had 16 digs.  Missouri Valley finished with 12 total blocks, and landed five aces.

The win ends the regular season at 21-4 overall and 15-4 in the Heart for Missouri Valley.  Ottawa moves to 19-10 on the season and 12-8 in the Heart. 

Up next, the team will host a quarterfinal round contest in the Heart Postseason Tournament, as the No. 3 seed.  The opponent will be No. 6 seeded Dordt (Iowa), with the match set for Saturday at 7 p.m., inside the Burns Athletic Complex.  The Vikings lost in five games to the Defenders in the regular season meeting.

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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.