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Cumberland University

Mo Bap
2
Cumberland (TN) CU 9-3, 3-0
3
Winner Missouri Baptist MBU 13-2, 8-0
Cumberland (TN) CU
9-3, 3-0
2
Final
3
Missouri Baptist MBU
13-2, 8-0
Winner
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 5 F
Cumberland (TN) CU 16 14 25 25 11 (2)
Missouri Baptist MBU 25 25 23 18 15 (3)

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at Oakland City

3/7/2025 | 6:00 PM

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Mar. 07 (Fri) / 6:00 PM
at Oakland City
History

Game Recap: Men's Volleyball |

Phoenix Push No. 4 Missouri Baptist to the Limit in Five-Set Thriller

ST. LOUIS, Mo.--Cumberland men's volleyball battled back from a slow start to take No. 4 Missouri Baptist to five sets, but the Spartans used a late surge in the final frame to edge the Phoenix, 3-2, on Tuesday night.

Cumberland (9-3, 3-0 MSC) struggled to find rhythm early, dropping the first two sets 25-16 and 25-14. Missouri Baptist (13-2, 8-0) dominated the second frame with an impressive .810 hitting percentage while holding the Phoenix to just nine kills. The Phoenix rallied back in the third and fourth set to push the match to five. The Spartans however used a late run in the fifth to get the win over the Phoenix. 

The Phoenix ended up posting 49 kills in the match with 22 attack errors. CU hit .267 collectively over the five sets. Cumberland had just four aces in the match with eight service errors and posted seven blocks defensively. CU just had 24 digs in the match, a little less than 5.0 digs per set. 

Joao Infante led the charge for Cumberland posting 20 kills on 38 swings with a .342 hit percentage. Jacob Whyte finished in double figures with 10 kills. Kix Ferrell provided a spark for CU in the third set on finishing the match with six kills. Setter Sam Mannebach orchestrated the Phoenix attack with 42 assists, while Alexander Heuer led the defense with nine digs. Cumberland tallied seven blocks as a team, with Ferrell recording a team-high three.

Missouri Baptist came out on fire in the first and second set before cooling off in the later portion of the match. The Spartans still ended up posting 66 kills with an outstanding .431 hit percentage. Marko Jovanovic led the Spartans with 22 kills, while Veljko Culibrk dominated at the net with 10 blocks to go along with six service aces. Kyle Radecki and Michael Olson each added in 15 kills. 

Missouri Baptist controlled the opening set, defeating Cumberland University 25-16. The Phoenix kept it close early, with Kyle Radecki and Veljko Culibrk providing key kills and defensive plays, but the Spartans pulled away midway through the set. Missouri Baptist capitalized on Cumberland errors to extend their lead. The Spartans closed out the set with efficient attacking and solid blocking to take the 1-0 match advantage.

The Spartans continued their strong play in the second set as they opened it and took a big lead quickly at 9-2. Missouri Baptist pushed it to double-figures up 14-4 and went on to win the second set 25-14. 

The Phoenix refused to back down, rallying in the third set behind standout performances from Infante and Whyte.  The Phoenix took control late, breaking a 16-16 tie with back-to-back errors from the Spartans. Despite a late surge from Missouri Baptist, Cumberland held firm, with Jacob Whyte delivering the final kill to close out the set, 25-23. 

Cumberland put together its best set of the night in the fourth, posting a scorching .583 hitting percentage with 17 kills and just three errors. The Phoenix defense also stepped up, holding the Spartans to .304 hitting as Cumberland rolled to a 25-18 victory to force a decisive fifth set.

The fifth set started out as a back-and-forth battle as both teams swapped points to 6-6. Continuing the trend the set played out to 9-9 before Missouri Baptist took control of the match, using a late 4-0 run to claim a 15-11 win and secure the match. 

The Phoenix return to River States action on Friday and Saturday on the road. The Phoenix will travel to Oakland City to take on the Mighty Oaks on Friday before taking on Brescia in Owensboro on Saturday. 
 
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Players Mentioned

Kix Ferrell

#1 Kix Ferrell

OH/MB
6' 6"
Junior
Alexander Heuer

#3 Alexander Heuer

DS/S/L
5' 11"
Sophomore
Sam Mannebach

#15 Sam Mannebach

S
6' 2"
Senior
Jacob Whyte

#2 Jacob Whyte

OPP/OH
6' 4"
Graduate Student
Joao Infante

#11 Joao Infante

OH
6' 5"
Junior

Players Mentioned

Kix Ferrell

#1 Kix Ferrell

6' 6"
Junior
OH/MB
Alexander Heuer

#3 Alexander Heuer

5' 11"
Sophomore
DS/S/L
Sam Mannebach

#15 Sam Mannebach

6' 2"
Senior
S
Jacob Whyte

#2 Jacob Whyte

6' 4"
Graduate Student
OPP/OH
Joao Infante

#11 Joao Infante

6' 5"
Junior
OH