JOPLIN, Mo. — Missouri Southern volleyball (7-12) defeated Arkansas Fort Smith (14-9) 3-1 (25-21, 25-23, 18-25, 25-17) on Wednesday evening at Leggett & Platt Athletic Center to commence the MIAA In-Season Tournament.
MSSU totaled 56 kills and hit .224 while holding UAFS to 41 kills and a .174 hitting percentage.
The Missouri Southern Lions move to 7-12 in 2026 while UAFS goes to 14-9 overall this season.
Grace Gardner finished with 14 kills, 18 digs and three blocks while hitting .323.
Addysen Alvis scored 16 points with 14 kills, seven digs, one ace and one solo block.
Brenna Weaver recorded 48 assists, added three aces and collected seven digs.
Kasey Goldberg posted 20 digs and added two service aces.
Kaelyn Kendrick led MSSU offensively with 15 kills.
Missouri Southern overcame a four-point start by UAFS and took the opening set 25-21. Alvis put MSSU on the board with a kill, and blocks involving
Hanna Lauterbach and Gardner helped pull the set even at 4-4 before Kendrick tied it again at 5-5.
Goldberg's service ace gave the Lions a 6-5 lead, and Southern built on it with kills from Gardner,
Ella Breazeale, Weaver, Lauterbach and Alvis to move ahead 15-10.
Breazeale totaled seven kills Wednesday.
UAFS cut the margin late, but Southern answered with an Alvis kill, a block by Weaver and Lauterbach, and Gardner's final kill from Weaver to close the set.
After a 6-5 deficit in the second set, Missouri Southern built separation behind Alvis, Gardner and Weaver, turning the score to 13-7 during Weaver's service stretch.
Earlier in that push, Alvis had three kills in a six-point span, and Weaver followed with a service ace before Gardner joined Lauterbach on a block to cap the run.
UAFS later cut into an 18-11 margin with five straight points, but MSSU steadied with kills from Breazeale, Lauterbach, Alvis and Gardner to reach set point at 24-18. After Arkansas Fort Smith answered with five consecutive points, Gardner finished the set with a kill from Weaver for a 25-23 Lions second set win.
In the third set, Missouri Southern rallied from a 15-12 deficit to tie it at 15-15 behind kills by Gardner and
Epifania Salamasina and a Weaver block, but UAFS scored 10 of the final 13 points to win the set 25-18.
Earlier, Southern opened with a point on an Arkansas Fort Smith service error and an Alvis ace, then got early kills from Kendrick and Breazeale while building a 6-3 lead. UAFS tied it at 6-6 and later used consecutive service aces by Breanna Smith to move ahead 11-8, leaving the Lions to chase through the middle of the set. MSSU kept answering with kills from Alvis and Gardner before its push to 15-15, but Arkansas Fort Smith's closing stretch included six kills and three blocks against Southern attacks.
The Lions broke open the fourth set from an 11-11 tie, winning 10 of the next 11 points to move ahead 21-12 behind a Goldberg service ace, kills from Gardner, Kendrick and Breazeale, and a UAFS attack error.
Earlier, Missouri Southern traded points through the opening stretch and got back-to-back service aces from Salamasina to take a 9-7 lead.
Kendrick was central to the middle and late separation, recording kills at 15-11, 17-12, 18-12, 19-12, 21-12 and 22-13, with Weaver assisting on several of them. After Gardner's kill pushed MSSU to set point at 24-14, Arkansas Fort Smith answered with three straight points before Alvis finished the set with a kill for a 25-17 Southern victory.
Salamasina posted two service aces to go with three digs and a kill.
Lauterbach notched four blocks and four kills.
Jordyn Whitfield chipped in seven digs and
Reagan Ashby added five.
The MIAA In-Season Tournament continues Thursday and Friday at Leggett & Platt Athletic Center. University of Central Oklahoma takes on University of Arkansas Fort Smith on Thursday in a neutral matchup set for 6 p.m., CT.
MSSU concludes the week with a meeting against #25-ranked Central Oklahoma Friday night at 6 p.m., CT.
Fall MSSU Athletic tickets are currently on sale
online. Fans can also purchase an
MIAA Network subscription to support Missouri Southern Athletics and catch all the Lions action this 2026-27 season.
