Saturday sweep extends win streak to three

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- After a sweep of eighth-ranked Park on Friday night, the Mount Mercy men's volleyball team extended their winning streak to three with sweeps of Graceland and Morningside on Saturday afternoon at Hennessey Recreation Center.

The Mustangs opened with a 25-17, 25-13, 25-21 defeat of the Yellowjackets (4-14, 2-10 Heart) in a Heart of America Athletic Conference match on Saturday. A balanced attack for Mount Mercy had six players with at least three kills. Bo Brainerd led the way with five kills in five attempts. Che Taylor, Raphael Massara, and Scott Buros each had four while Akeel Oxley and Alessandro Spendolini three apiece.

Morningside made the Mustangs work in their final match of the day, but Mount Mercy came out on top 25-18, 25-19, 28-26. Oxley totaled 15 kills, four blocks, and four digs. Colin Castelnau drilled nine kills to go along with six digs, Spendolini tallied six kills and eight digs, and Brainerd had five kills and six blocks. Rafael Vieyra dished out 34 assists and Johann Schopsdau got 15 digs.

Mount Mercy (20-5, 7-5 Heart) hosts fourth-ranked Grand View (16-4, 10-2 Heart) on Tuesday at 7:00 pm at Hennessey Rec Center.