Mustangs add two wins, break hitting record on ONU

MARSHALL, Mo. — The Morningside men's volleyball team kept rolling Friday, picking up a pair of wins over Hastings and Olivet Nazarene at the Missouri Valley Tournament.

The Mustangs opened the day with a straight-set sweep of Hastings, winning 28-26, 25-18 and 25-21. After surviving a tight first set — capped by a clutch kill from Natan Alves — Morningside found its rhythm. The Mustangs jumped out to a 7-2 lead in the second set and never looked back, using a mix of pressure and errors to build separation before Mohamed Benkrid ended the frame with a kill.

Alves led the Mustangs with 15 kills while hitting .379, while Benkrid added eight kills and the team's lone solo block. Draider Wilcox totaled 22 assists, Lucca Stoelinga chipped in 19, and Tucker Juhnke paced the defense with 14 digs.

Morningside carried the momentum into the afternoon and closed the day with a four-set win over Olivet Nazarene, 27-25, 22-25, 25-13 and 25-21.

Stoelinga sealed the opening set with a service ace in a back-and-forth frame, and the Mustangs took control in the third set by racing out to a 10-3 lead. Benkrid recorded two kills during the run, while Fernando Vinti and Edoardo Pirazzo also contributed. Liam Lutz finished the match with a kill in the fourth set off an assist from Stoelinga.

The Mustangs hit a school-record .345 in the four-set match, breaking the previous mark of .340 set in 2016. Morningside totaled 54 kills, led by Benkrid's 16 on a .481 hitting percentage. Pirazzo added eight kills, while Wilcox led the offense with 30 of the team's 54 assists. Juhnke finished with 11 digs.