No. 3 Men's Volleyball Overcomes Early Deficit in Win Over Clarke

Marshall, Mo., (April 4, 2025)- The No. 3 Missouri Valley College men's volleyball team hosted Clarke (Iowa) in a Heart of America Athletic Conference match Friday evening inside the Burns Athletic Complex.  The Vikings fell behind early, but bounced back to win in four games by scores of 19-25, 25-13, 25-20, 25-20.

The opening game began with Clarke taking five of the first six points and moved ahead, 5-1.  Missouri Valley responded to win five of the following six points, including two-straight kills from Sophomore Middle Blocker Joao Tavares (Sao Paulo, Brazil) and one kill from Sophomore Outside Hitter Davi Azevedo (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) to tie the game at 6-6.  A three-point run for MVC, including one kill each by Azevedo, Tavares and Junior Opposite Samuel Essilfie (Tema, Ghana) moved the Vikings in front, 9-7.  The Pride answered back, and eventually tied the score at 11-11.  One kill from Senior Middle Blocker Arthur Martineli (Curitiba, Brazil) broke the deadlock, but CU began to build up an advantage from there.  Clarke eventually sat on top, 17-14.  An ace from Essilfie cut the Missouri Valley deficit to 17-16, but three-straight points won by Clarke put the score at 22-18.  The Pride closed out the game, taking the opener, 25-19.

The two teams traded points at the start of the second game, as Azevedo had two kills, and Martineli added one kill to help MVC hold a 5-4 lead.  Missouri Valley then took control of the game, winning eight of nine points during a stretch to open a 13-5 advantage.  Essilfie and Tavares each had two kills, while Azevedo added one kill and one ace.  Senior Setter Lucas Rodrigues (Balnelariu Cambriu, Brazil) and Tavares teamed up on a block.  Clarke cut its deficit down to 15-9, while MVC began to build up its advantage.  Essilfie and Martineli had two kills, while one kill from Azevedo and a block by Essilfie put the Vikings up by double-digits, 21-11.  One kill each from Essilfie and Azevedo moved the team to game-point, and Tavares finished off the second game with one more kill, 25-13 to tie the teams at 1-1 in the match. Missouri Valley hit at a match-high .542 percentage, and kept CU to a -.053 percentage in the game.

The Pride started game three with an early lead, moving ahead, 7-3.  Missouri Valley responded to win six of the next seven points, including one kill from both Azevedo and Sophomore Outside Hitter Andrey Bastos (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil), a block from Freshman Middle Blocker Martin Teseyra (Salta, Argentina) and Tavares along with a Tavares ace helped give MVC a 9-8 advantage.  The two teams traded points over the next stretch of play, which included one kill from Junior Opposite Luca Hasse (Paderborn, Germany) to keep Missouri Valley in front, 13-12.  The Vikings began to increase their lead, with two more kills from Azevedo and Tavares to make it an 18-15 score.  Clarke eventually cut its deficit late in the game to 21-20.  However, MVC went on a run to finish out the game, as Hasse had one kill and Senior Libero Leonardo Leao (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) put down two-straight aces to finish a 25-20 win. 

Needing a win in the fourth game to extend the match, Clarke opened with a 5-4 lead.  The Vikings responded by taking nine of the next ten points to claim a 13-6 advantage.  Tavares landed two kills, and both Hasse and Azevedo had one kill to go with an ace by Freshman Outside Hitter Tymoteusz Zadeberny (Gliwice, Poland) during the run.  The teams traded points over the next stretch, with CU eventually working down its deficit to 19-14.  Tavares teamed up on a block with Freshman Setter Matheus Curi (Ribierao Preto, Brazil) and Zadeberny put down two more aces to make it a 22-14 score.  Clarke tried to rally late, and won five of six points late in the game to trail, 23-19.  Sophomore Outside Hitter Pierro Porras (Lima, Peru) put the team at game-point, then ended the contest with one final kill to close game four at 25-20, and give MVC a 3-1 win in the match.

Azevedo led with 13 kills, on a .391 hitting percentage, to go with seven digs.  Tavares had 12 kills, and a .500 hitting percentage, while Essilfie put down 10 kills.  Rodrigues led with 42 assists, and added five digs, while Leao had nine digs.  Missouri Valley totaled eight aces and seven blocks as a team.

The win moves Missouri Valley to 18-2 overall and 14-2 in the Heart.  Clarke drops to 5-21 on the season and 3-14 in the conference.

Up next, the Viking men's volleyball team will host No. 8 Mount Mercy (Iowa) in a top ten contest, Saturday at 2 p.m., inside the Burns Athletic Complex

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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.