Women's Volleyball Outlasts Tabor at Viking Invitational

Marshall, Mo., (August 23, 2024)- The Missouri Valley College women's volleyball team opened play at the Viking Invitational Friday evening with a non-conference match against Tabor (Kan.).  The Vikings fell behind early, and battled back to win in five games, by scores of 23-25, 25-17, 25-23, 23-25, 15-10.

The first game began with Tabor going in front, by a 3-1 score.  Missouri Valley answered back, as Senior Middle Hitter Alanah Best (Lima, Ohio) landed two kills, and both Senior Outside Hitter Ana Oro (Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina) and Senior Outside Hitter Ksenija Simun (Kotor, Montenegro) each added one kill to help the team win five of six points during a stretch of play to move on top, 6-4.  A block from Simun followed by two-straight kills from Junior Middle Hitter Kinga Ramonowicz (Krepiec, Poland) increased the advantage to 9-6.  Tabor worked back, and eventually tied the score at 13-13.  The Vikings responded to win six of seven points during a late stretch of play, including one kill from Junior Setter Ana Santos (Curitiba, Brazil), Simun, Freshman Right Side Harper Herring (Jacksonville, Fla.) and Ramonowicz to sit on top, 21-16.  However, the lead was chipped down, and TC eventually tied the teams at 22-22.  After MVC briefly went ahead 23-22, Tabor won the final three points to claim the opening game, 25-23.

Missouri Valley took control of the second game at the start, as Junior Defensive Specialist Ana Franco (Cascais, Portugal), Sophomore Setter Paige Siebert (St. Louis, Mo.) and Oro each laded one ace, while Senior Outside Hitter Angelique Morgan (Jupiter, Fla.) teamed up with Best on a block, then the pair both put down one kill apiece to help MVC build up a 10-3 lead.  Tabor came back to win seven of eight points to close the gap down to 11-10.  The Vikings then won five-straight, helped by one kill from Ramonowicz, Santos and Simun, to make it a 16-10 score.  Missouri Valley stayed in front through the rest of the game, maintaining at least a five point spread.  Ramonowicz teamed up with Morgan on a late block, then Ramonowicz moved MVC to game-point with a kill.  Tabor ended the game on an error, to make it a 25-17 win for the Vikings.

With the match tied at 1-1 in games won, Tabor moved on top early in the third game, by a 7-4 score.  Missouri Valley went ahead by taking six of the next seven points, as Best Morgan and Ramonowicz each had one kill, Senior Libero Momoko Yokoyama (Tokyo, Japan) landed an ace, and Simun finished out the stretch with back-to-back kills to make it 10-8.  Simun came back with another kill, while Oro added a solo block to extend the lead out to 13-9.  Tabor took control midway through the game, winning six of seven points to move in front, 15-14.  The two teams traded points through a 19-19 score, until three-straight points went to the Vikings.  Morgan opened the run with a kill, while Ramonowicz teamed up with Simun on a block, then added a solo block to give the team a 22-19 lead.  Missouri Valley made it to game-point on a kill from Santos, and Simun finished out a 25-23 win with one more kill to put the team ahead, 2-1, in games won.

The fourth game began with Tabor winning six-straight points over a stretch of play to hold a 9-5 advantage.  Missouri Valley gradually chipped away at the deficit, and used one kill from both Oro and Simun to trail, 13-12.  Another three-point run later in the game, featuring one ace from Franco, tied the score at 17-17.  Tabor continued to move back on top, and eventually led, 23-19.  Ramonowicz started a late run for MVC with one kill, while two-straight kills from Oro cut the gap even closer.  Best landed a kill to end a four-point run, and tie the teams at 23-23.  However, Tabor won the final two points to force a fifth game with a 25-23 win.

The two teams traded points at the start of the fifth game, as the score was tied at 5-5.  Ramonowicz came back with a kill, followed by an ace from Yokoyama as MVC won four-straight to hold a 9-5 lead.  The advantage sat at 11-6, but TC won four of the next five points to close the gap to 12-10.  Missouri Valley finished out the game from there, as two Tabor errors and a Siebert ace gave the Vikings a 15-10 win the game, and a 3-2 victory in the match.

Ramonowicz led with 15 kills on a .370 hitting percentage.  Simun had a double-double of 13 kills and 14 digs, while Oro finished with a double-double of 12 kills and 13 digs.  Best totaled 12 kills on a .345 hitting percentage.  Siebert led with 26 assists, while Santos had 22 assists.  Franco led with 15 digs.  Missouri Valley totaled six blocks and nine aces as a team.

The win moves Missouri Valley to 4-3 on the season.

Next up, the Vikings host two more matches at the Viking Invitational, Saturday, inside the Burns Athletic Complex.  Both matches will be against Heart of America Athletic Conference opponents, but will be non-conference meetings.  The first match at 9 a.m., against William Penn (Iowa), followed by a 3 p.m., contest with Graceland (Iowa).

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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.

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