COLUMBIA, Ky. – The (RV) Blue Raider volleyball team travels west to St. Louis this weekend for the Missouri Baptist University Classic. Lindsey Wilson will be making its seventh all-time appearance in the classic since first attending in 2000. The four-match schedule includes the hosts Spartans and St. Ambrose (Iowa) on Friday at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. CST, respectively, then McPherson (Kan.) and Faulkner (Ala.) at 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Saturday.

The classic will serve as the Blue Raiders final slate of non-conference opponents this regular season as Lindsey Wilson enters 11-6 against non-Mid-South schools this year.

Over those 17 matches, the Blue Raiders are besting their opponents .231 to .143 on the attack and producing an average of three more kills per set. The opposition has, however, got the better of Lindsey Wilson in the long run, winning four out of six matches that have gone past the three-set minimum.

Missouri Baptist opened the season ranked 11^th in the NAIA Preseason Coaches Poll but quickly plummeted out of the top 25 after starting the year with only two wins in its first 11 matches. The Spartans have found a rhythm winning nine of their last 10 and have won five straight against the Blue Raiders dating back to 2018.

St. Ambrose lost all three of its matches played in St. Louis a season ago, including a 3-1 loss to Lindsey Wilson. Even still, the Fighting Bees went on to the win the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference tournament and upset then-16^th-ranked Saint Mary (Neb.) in the NAIA National Tournament Opening Round. This season, the Fighting Bees are 8-12 and still searching for a winning streak longer than two matches.

No. 24 McPherson started off its 2024 campaign receiving votes and has slowly navigated its way into the top 25. The Bulldogs won their first five contests of the season, all by sweeps. Two of those wins came against top-25 opponents. Since that start, McPherson is 2-5 versus teams who are receiving votes, or better, in the national poll.

Faulkner is on back-to-back losses coming into the weekend and sits at 6-10 overall. The Eagles last played a Mid-South team on August 23 in Montgomery, defeating Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.) in four sets.

Lindsey Wilson is 9-9, combined, against its upcoming opponents, including a 6-7 mark in the all-time series with Missouri Baptist.

All four matches will be broadcast on the Spartan Digital Network.