[Men's Volleyball] Mustangs Stay Undefeated in the Heart
LAMONI, Iowa/MARSHALL, Mo. – The Mustangs were on the road this weekend for two Heart of America Conference matchups after given the number nine spot in the most current NAIA Coaches' Top 10 Poll. Collecting two road wins over the Yellowjackets of Graceland University and the Vikings of Missouri Valley College, the Mustangs remain undefeated in conference play and sit atop the standings with a perfect 5-0 record. Overall, the Mustangs are 13-5 on the season.
On Friday night, the Mustangs swept the Yellowjackets 3-0 (25-21, 25-22, 25-18). Holding the momentum for the majority of the match, the Mustangs would fend off the home team late into each set to secure the win. The two teams tallied the same amount of kills, but the Mustangs committed five less errors propelling them past the Yellowjackets. The Mustangs also hit .253 compared to the Yellowjackets' .181 hitting percentage. In the match, the Mustangs totaled 37 kills, 34 assists, 34 digs, five service aces, and nine blocks. Individual leaders were Nikola Stoimenov (JR/Pazardzhik, Bulgaria) with 11 kills followed by Evan Gaskill (SO/Cedar Rapids, Iowa) with eight and Ben Steffen (SO/Madison, Wis.) with seven and a .636 hitting percentage. Andrew Colantone (SO/Plainfield, Ill.) dished out all but five assists totaling 29. Leading the defense was Mitchell Wannahwilai (FR/Rockford, Ill.) with 10 digs. Gaskill collected seven digs along with Julian Armendano (FR/La Plata, Argentina) contributing six.
Traveling further south for the second match of the weekend, the Mustangs bounced back after dropping set one to top the Vikings 3-1 (23-25, 25-18, 25-22, 25-21). Despite getting edged by the home team in set one, the Mustangs snagged the momentum of the match to take care of business. The Mustangs had seven more kills than the Vikings and hit .287 compared to the Vikings' .269 hitting percentage. In the match, the Mustangs totaled 59 kills, 57 assists, 53 digs, nine service aces, and nine blocks. Individual leaders were Stoimenov with 17 kills and Armendano with a career-high 17 kills hitting .448. Strahil Svilenski (JR/Sofia, Bulgaria) added nine kills and a .316 hitting percentage. Colantone handed out 53 assists. Gaskill lead the defense with a career-high 14 digs followed by Wannahwilai with 10. Armendano would also tally 10 digs collecting the double-double on the night.
Up next, the Mustangs will host three Heart of America Conference matches at home starting with a matchup against No. 5 Grand View University on Tuesday, March 5 at 7:00 P.M. in Hennessey Rec Center.