No. 5 Men's Volleyball Sweeps past William Penn in Ranked Match

Marshall, Mo., (March 6, 2026)- The No. 5 Missouri Valley College men's volleyball team hosted No. 6 William Penn (Iowa) in a Heart of America Athletic Conference match Friday evening.  The contest was this week's Heart Game of the Week, presented by Olathe Chamber of Commerce.  The Vikings swept the contest by scores of, 25-18, 25-22, 25-21.

Game one opened with Missouri Valley going in front early, as both Freshman Outside Hitter Bart Mulder (Hoogeveen, Netherlands) and Senior Middle Blocker Arthur Martenelli (Curitiba, Brazil) each added a kill, and Sophomore Middle Blocker Martin Tseyera (Salta, Argentina) had a solo block to make it a 4-2 score.  The Vikings gradually built up their lead, winning six of the next seven points, featuring a kill and an ace from Junior Outside Hitter Pierro Porras (Lima, Peru), a solo block from Freshman Setter Leonardo Poiatti (Sao Paulo, Brazil), and two kills from Mulder to hold a 10-4 advantage.  Missouri Valley continued to stay ahead, using two kills from Freshman Outside Hitter Loan Fargier (France), a block from Poiatti, along with a kill from Junior Middle Blocker Joao Tavares (Parana, Brazil) to sit in front, 16-8.  William Penn won four-straight points to cut into its deficit and make it a 17-12 score, but Missouri Valley answered back taking five of the next seven points, as WPU had three errors, Porras landed a kill, and Poiatti put down another solo block to put the score at 22-14.  The Statesmen chipped away at their deficit, until trailing 24-18, where Tavares had back-to-back kills.  The final kill came from Mulder to end the game for Missouri Valley, 25-18.

Play in the second game started with teams trading points through a 8-8 score, which included a kill and a block from Fargier, and a kill apiece from Mulder and Tseyera.  William Penn won three-straight points to move ahead 11-8.  However, Missouri Valley responded winning five of the next eight points to close the gap down to 14-13, as Fargier and Martenelli each had a kill.  The Vikings followed with a run to tie the game and eventually take the lead, as Poiatti had three solo blocks, and Fargier put down a kill and a block to move MVC ahead, 21-17.  The Statesmen tried to climb late in the game, winning five-straight points to tie the game at 21-21, but three-straight kills from Senior Opposite Luca Hasse (Paderborn, Germany) sent the team to game-point.  The final point came off a WPU error, and Missouri Valley won the second game, 25-22.

Looking for the sweep in game three, Missouri Valley won five of the opening seven points.  Fargier landed two kills, while Martenelli had a block and a kill to start the game to make it a 5-2 score.  The Vikings used a kill each from Tseyera and Porras, two WPU errors to extend the lead, 9-5.  The Statesmen closed the gap down, winning the next three points, but Missouri Valley went on a run, taking eight of the next eleven points, featuring two kills and an ace from Fargier, and a kill and block from Martenelli to hold a 17-10 advantage.  MVC continued to pull away with a kill and back-to-back aces from Hasse to put the score at 21-12.  William Penn worked back late in the game, as they won seven of the next nine points, and sat in a 23-18 deficit. Fargier had a kill to send the contest to match-point, WPU won the next three points but Fargier ended the game with another kill on the final point, and Missouri Valley won the third game, 25-21, to sweep the match.

Fargier led with eleven kills, two blocks and an ace, while both Porras and Mulder followed with five kills each.  Martenelli added four kills, three digs and two blocks.  Hasse had four kills, and Poiatti finished with 32 assists and six blocks.  Missouri Valley totaled eleven blocks and four aces.

Missouri Valley improves to 12-1 on the season and 6-1 on the Heart, while William Penn drops to 8-4 overall and 5-3 in the conference.

Up next, the Viking men's volleyball team will host Grand View (Iowa) in a Heart contest, Saturday at 2 p.m. The match will be played at Marshall (Mo.) High School.

Box Score-Click Here

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.