Women's Volleyball Finishes Play at Labor Day Classic

Bellevue, Neb., (Sept. 2, 2023)- The Missouri Valley College women's volleyball team finished play at the Labor Day Classic in Bellevue, Neb., with two matches Saturday afternoon.  The Vikings fell in contests against McPherson (Kan.) and Valley City State (N.D.).

The first game against McPherson started with the two teams trading points early.  Junior Outside Hitter Juliana Oliviera (Bibeirao Preto, Brazil) had two kills while Junior Outside Hitter Jisell Chumacero (Greeley, Colo.) finished off one kill, and Senior Outside Hitter Ksenija Simun (Kotor, Montenegro) landed an ace to put Missouri Valley in front, 7-6.  McPherson answered back, and briefly went on top, 12-10.  Simun responded with two-straight kills, followed by one kill and one ace from Junior Outside Hitter Maria Bertholdo (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) to move MVC ahead, 14-13.  McPherson took control from there, and won seven of the next eight points to build up a 20-15 advantage.  Oliviera teamed up with Chumacero, then finished off a late kill to help the Vikings, but McPherson closed out the first game with a 25-20 win.

Game two opened with McPherson building up a 7-3 lead.  Missouri Valley responded by taking four of the next five points to trail, 8-7.  Simun had one kill and an ace during the stretch, while Oliviera and Chumacero each finished off one kill.  McPherson began to increase its lead from there, and won five of the following six points to put the score at 13-8.  Five-straight points for McPherson made it a 19-10 deficit for Missouri Valley, and the Vikings were unable to work back into the game.  McPherson won game two, 25-14.

Needing a win in the third game to extend the match, Missouri Valley won four of the first five points.  Bertholdo finished off two kills, while Chumacero added one kill and an ace at the start of the game.  The Vikings maintained a lead, and won three-straight points, with the help of one kill from both Bertholdo and Chumacero, along with a block from Chumacero and Simun, to stretch the advantage to 11-8.  McPherson answered with winning four-straight points, but one kill from both Simun and Sophomore Middle Blocker Nekane Parera (Barcelona, Spain) allowed MVC to go back on top, 14-12.  The two teams traded points over the next stretch of play.  Simun, Oliviera and Bertholdo each had one kill as the Vikings stayed in front, 20-18.  Bertholdo added the next two kills for Missouri Valley, as the lead sat at 22-21.  McPherson closed out the game from there, winning four of the final five points to earn a 25-23 win, and a sweep.

Simun led with 11 kills and added seven digs.  Bertholdo totaled nine kills and 17 digs.  Junior Setter Lynsey Day (Kingman, Ariz.) led with 31 assists and had seven digs.  Senior Defensive Specialist Jeanie Palsis (Nanakuli, Hawaii) finished with 10 digs.  Missouri Valley had five aces and four blocks as a team.

A match with Valley City State followed, and Missouri Valley fell behind early in the first game of the contest.  Valley City State got out to a 13-5 advantage.  The Vikings were unable to work back into the game, and eventually fell by a 25-12 score.  Game two featured another early lead for Valley City State, out to 4-1.  Chumacero came through with one kill and an ace, while Bertholdo finished off one kill to tie the teams at 4-4.  Points were traded over the next stretch, as Simun, Parera, Day and Oliviera each had one kill.  Palsis also put down an ace, and brought the score even at 10-10.  Valley City State broke the tie, and won six-straight points to make it a 16-10 advantage.  Missouri Valley used two kills and an ace from Simun late in the game, but could not overcome the deficit, as Valley City State won the second game, 25-19.

The third game started with an early run for Missouri Valley, as Chumacero and Bertholdo teamed up on a block for the first point, while Oliviera added one kill.  Bertholdo had another solo block, and Day finished off one kill to give MVC a 9-4 lead.  Valley City State came back with five-straight points to tie the teams, while a kill from Junior Middle Blocker Brooke Wright (Mansfield, Ark.) started a three-point stretch for the Vikings that allowed the team to go in front, 12-9.  Chumacero added two-straight kills, and Bertholdo had another kill to stretch the lead to 16-12.  Valley City State began to chip away at its deficit, and eventually tied the game at 18-18.  Four of the next five points were won by Valley City State, which put the Vikings behind, 22-19.  Wright had two more kills, and two errors by Valley City State got MVC to within a 24-23 score.  However, the final point went to Valley City State, and ended the game, 25-23, which resulted in a sweep.

Chumacero had eight kills in the match, followed by Oliviera with seven kills.  Day added 28 assists, and Palsis had eight digs.  Missouri Valley finished with four aces as a team.

The losses drop Missouri Valley to 5-4 on the season.

Up next, the Vikings will play two matches at the Park (Mo.) Tournament, Sept. 9, in Parkville, Mo.  The first match starts at 10 a.m., against Ottawa (Kan.), followed by a 12:30 p.m., match with St. Mary (Kan.).

McPherson Box Score-Click Here

Valley City State Box Score-Click Here

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.