Mustangs grind out win over Ottawa

SIOUX CITY, IOWA – A long, hard-fought win pushed the Mustangs to stand alone atop the Great Plains Athletic Conference, as Morningside emerged victorious over Ottawa University, 29-31, 28-26, 25-21, and 25-13.

Natan Alves led the Mustangs' attack with 21 kills. Jacob Baynes followed with 14 kills, hitting a team high .346 among players with 10 attempts or more. Isaiah Baynes had 10 kills, while Tharen Cox had five and Jacob DePauw was able to strike for four kills. DePauw added 45 assists to his offensive totals for the day.

On defense the Mustangs tallied 14 total blocks as Branton Jones and Alves each totaled seven blocks. Cox denied four attacks, while Isaiah Baynes and DePauw tallied two each.

Behind the defensive front, Tucker Juhnke had a team-high nine digs. Owen Anderson followed with eight, and Alves and DePauw had seven apiece.

The Mustangs go on a seven game road trip, starting with a 7 p.m. match at St. Ambrose tomorrow night before picking up a pair of games at William Penn on Saturday.