Statesmen hand Mustangs first loss of the season

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- Mount Mercy's 10-match, 30-set winning streak came to an end on Tuesday in their Heart of America Athletic Conference opener at Hennessey Recreation Center as ninth-ranked William Penn defeated the 15th-ranked Mustangs, 25-20, 26-24, 25-21.

Mount Mercy came in hitting .377 while William Penn was attacking at a .333 clip so far this season. However, in the opening set the Statesmen hit .417 as the Mustangs struggled to a .154 attack percentage. Those numbers were practically reversed in set number two but William Penn still managed to take a 2-0 lead. They hit .385 and Mount Mercy .226 in the third and decisive set. Service errors were also a factor in the match. The Mustangs finished with 18 and the Statesmen 12.

Akeel Oxley totaled 11 kills to lead the Mustangs (10-1, 0-1 Heart). Bo Brainerd had an excellent night, finishing with 10 kills and no attack errors while hitting .500 with a pair of blocks as well. Raphael Massara added nine kills, Rafael Vieyra 34 assists and eight digs.

Ike Papes topped the Statesmen (6-1, 1-0 Heart) with 10 kills to go along with four digs. Landon Krause ended up with nine kills and six blocks, Matt Helmich dished out 29 assists and Britten Beallis had five blocks.

Mount Mercy faces a tough road test on Friday when they face second-ranked Park (9-1, 1-0 Heart) at 7:00 pm at Breckon Sports Center in Parkville, Mo. The Mustangs move on to Lamoni on Saturday to take on Graceland (2-5, 0-1 Heart) at 2:00 pm the Morden Center.