Marshall, Mo. - The No. 18 Central Methodist Volleyball program secured sweeps against Graceland University and Tabor College Saturday to conclude the Viking Invitational in Marshall, Mo.
The Eagles defeated the Yellowjackets in their second game of the weekend in straight sets by scores of 25-19, 25-10, and 25-15. CMU followed that up with a win over Tabor College by scores of 25-10, 25-13, and 25-17.
Against Graceland, Joana Milho led the Central attackers with 11 kills on 23 swings for a .304 hitting percentage. Gimena Dezeo nearly joined Milho with double digit kills, as the junior finished the match with nine. Additionally, Dezeo recorded one block and a dig.
Fellow junior Mia Trankler tallied five kills on eight swings. Kyndra Collier followed with four kills and three digs.
Giulia Gainelli dished out a team-high 11 assists while also recording four service aces and six digs. Mariah Bostic-Jones added 10 assists followed by Gabi Owczarek with seven.
Super senior Annabelle Maassen led the defense with 14 digs while also adding four kills and a service ace to her stat line. Rita Campos joined Maassen in double figures with 12 digs. She also dished out six assists.
As a team, the Eagles finished the match hitting .255 compared to just a .033 hitting percentage for Graceland.
CMU continued to roll into their final game of the invitational against Tabor, as the Eagles came out in the first set hitting .517 with 17 kills on 29 attacks. CMU held the Bluejays to a negative hitting percentage in each set, which included 19 total attack errors.
Milho once again led the hitters with 12 kills, while the duo of Trankler and Dezeo each finished the match with eight. Owczarek recorded 25 total assists followed by Gainelli with 11.
CMU finished the night with 10 service aces, including five from Maassen. The five service aces mark the most for the native of Jeff City since she aced Graceland six times on Oct. 6, 2022. It is also the second highest total of her career in a single match.
Additionally, Maassen once again led the defense with 11 digs.
The Eagles improve to 3-0 and open up the home portion of their schedule Thursday, Sept. 5 against No. 11 nationally ranked Missouri Baptist. First serve is set for 6:00 p.m. inside Puckett Field House.
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