Saturday afternoon the Bears Volleyball team took on their second MCCC opponent ranked in the top ten in the nation. The Ambassadors of Ozark Christian (Joplin, MO) made their annual trip to Hockett Auditorium to take on the Bears in a match counting in both the MCCC and NCCAA Division II Southwest Region standings.

The Ambassadors came into the match with something to prove after losing to Manhattan Christian in straight sets the night before. They jumped on the Bears 7-1 en route to taking the first set 25-12. The second set, however, was a different story. The Bears dug deep and went toe to toe with the Ambassadors. Trailing 17-18 late in the set, it was the Ambassadors who won seven of the last eight points to win the second set 25-18. In the third set, the Bears led by as many as four in the early portions before the Ambassadors rallied to take the set 25-16 for a straight set win.

Senior Sarah Sullivan had seven kills and four blocks and Junior Danielle Gressel had five assist to lead the Bears offensively. Defensively, Junior Morgan Stander and Sophomore RaeLyn Epp combined for 17 digs.

The Bears (0-7, 0-2) aren’t back in action until Friday when they hit the road to take on MCCC foes St. Louis Christian (Florissant, MO) on Friday, September 20th 7:00 PM CST and Central Christian College of the Bible (Moberly, MO) on Saturday at 2:00 PM.