POINT LOOKOUT, Mo. – The MACU Volleyball team saw its 2025 campaign come to a tough end on Thursday night inside Keeter Gymnasium as the Evangels suffered a heartbreaking 3-2 loss to No. 8 seed Sterling in the morning before falling to top-seeded Columbia International in straight sets in the afternoon.

Despite suffering a pair of losses, the Evangels still had the hope of competing in tiebreaker sets on Friday morning, but after stunning MACU in five sets, the Warriors ended up doing the same thing to No. 5 seed Bethel in the evening. SC rallied from a set down to defeat the Pilots in five sets as well to eliminate the Evangels.
 
MATCH ONE / Mid-America Christian vs. Sterling
SCORE

• Sterling 3, Mid-America Christian 2 (20-25, 25-22, 20-25, 25-23, 15-13)
  • Mid-America Christian (20-13)
  • Sterling (18-14)

TOP PERFORMERS

• Alica Obusekova – 19 Kills, .189 ATK%, 10 Digs, 2 Blocks
• Marcela Nalin – 11 Kills
• Mia Benson – 9 Kills, .818 ATK%, 7 Digs, 4 Blocks
• Casady McKinney – 24 Assists, 20 Digs, 9 Kills, 3 Aces, 2 Blocks
• Madison Lee – 19 Assists, 13 Digs
• Ryley Bowden – 14 Digs, 10 Assists, 3 Aces

MATCH SUMMARY

• Set One
  • Both teams traded early runs up to it being tied at 6-6 before a Seyi Atolagbe side-out kill allowed Mid-America Christian to go on a 3-0 run on a Casady McKinney and Mia Benson assisted block to make it 9-6.
  • The Evangels eventually extended their lead out to 14-10 on back-to-back kills by McKinney and Alica Obusekova, however, the Warriors utilized a late 5-0 run as a Marcela Nalin attack error gave Sterling its largest lead of the contest at 19-17.
  • MACU put together a massive response, as co-op block between Benson and Nalin allowed the Evangels to close out the first set with an 8-1 streak capped off on another assisted block by Benson and Madi Trayler, sealing the 25-20 win.
• Set Two
  • Sterling grabbed the early momentum as the Warriors utilized a 4-0 run to capture a 7-3 lead on a block by Aliya McClanahan and Gracie Kirchhoff, forcing MACU head coach Holly McKamie to call a timeout.
  • The Evangels continued to try to battle back, eventually closing it to a one-point game at 16-15 on a Ryley Bowden service ace.
  • The Warriors eventually put MACU against the brink with MACU facing its largest deficit when a MACU attack error brought it to set point at 24-19.
  • The Evangels tried to battle back, scoring three in a row off kills by Obusekova and Atolagbe before Obusekova scored a solo block to make it 24-22, forcing Sterling to call a timeout.
  • However, MACU was unable to sustain the run as McClanahan powered down the set point kill out of the timeout to seal the 25-22 result.
• Set Three
  • It was back-and-forth in the early going as a 4-1 swing briefly gave Sterling an 8-7 advantage before the Evangels rattled off three in a row behind a Marcela Nalin and back-to-back SC attack errors making it a 10-8 MACU edge.
  • With MACU maintaining the lead midway through, Sterling put together a strong 5-0 surge as three-straight Warrior kills and back-to-back MACU miscues gave the Warriors a 17-14 lead.
  • Mid-America Christian put together a massive comeback following a side-out Sterling attack error as the Evangels went on an 8-1 streak behind the serve of Obusekova as Nalin finished off the streak with a kill to make it 22-18 MACU.
  • The Warriors tried to fight back with back-to-back points, but the Evangels finished strong, scoring the last three on back-to-back kills from Atolagbe and McKinney before Benson and Nalin teamed up on the set point block to seal the 25-20 result.
• Set Four
  • After trading the first two points, Sterling seized the early advantage with a couple of aces from the service line to hold an 8-3 advantage.
  • Following a 2-2 swing for both teams, MACU made its charge by going on an 8-2 run as back-to-back SC attack errors gave MACU the 13-12 lead and force the Warriors to call a timeout.
  • Sterling scored three of the next four to briefly take back the lead before the Evangels swung back with two in a row off of back-to-back terminations from Obusekova and Atolagbe to make it 16-15. However, Sterling countered with another 4-1 surge to stretch its lead to 19-17, bringing McKamie to take a timeout.
  • After back-to-back service errors, MACU rattled off four of the next five to take a 22-21 advantage off an Obusekova kill. However, the Warriors were the better half to finish out the set by scoring four of the last six to grind out a tough 25-23 win over MACU.
• Set Five
  • Mid-America Christian opened the fifth by scoring two of the first three points before Sterling countered with a 4-1 surge to capture the 5-3 advantage.
  • After trading back-to-back points, the Evangels rattled off three in a row to take a brief 7-6 lead over the Warriors off a Nalin kill, but Sterling swung back with three-straight of its own to own a 9-7 lead just after the side rotation.
  • Following a huge Benson side-out kill, the Evangels went on a strong run as McKinney scored a pair of aces around another Benson termination to take back an 11-9 advantage.
  • The Evangels put the Warriors against the ropes following four-straight side-out points to set the score to 13-11, but disaster reared its head for MACU as Sterling scored the final four points of the match to hand the Evangels a disappointing 15-13 defeat.

MATCH NOTES

• Despite the result, Mid-America Christian was the better side in the attack, scoring 62 kills with 32 errors for a .168 hitting percentage while Sterling finished with 46 kills and 27 errors for a .119 attack rate.
• Blocks played a massive factor in the match as the Warriors tallied 13 rejections to only six for the Evangels. Sterling also held a slight edge in service scoring as MACU scored 11 aces and 12 errors to SC's nine aces to seven miscues for a 21-18 differential.
• Most of MACU's scoring came from its two outsides as Alica Obusekova scored 19 kills and Marcela Nalin posted 11. However, both were challenged in the attack with each committing nine attack errors to finish with a .189 and .068 hitting rates.
• The most efficient MACU attacker in the contest was Mia Benson. On just 11 attack attempts, Benson bashed nine kills for a career-high .818 hitting percentage to go with a team-high four blocks to go with seven digs.
• Casady McKinney just narrowly missed a triple double, dishing out a team-high 24 assists and shoveling a team-best 20 digs to go with nine kills in the attack and scoring three aces. On her first ace of the match, McKinney became the first player in program history to reach 200 career aces.
• Madison Lee also posted a double-double from the setter rotation, dishing out 19 assists with 13 digs while Ryley Bowden was the third Evangel to notch a double-double from the libero position with 14 digs and 10 assists while also scoring three aces from the service line.
• It was a tough result after the Evangels managed to sweep Sterling in the NCCAA Central Region Championship in Sterling, Kan. back on Nov. 20.

MATCH TWO / Mid-America Christian vs. Columbia International
SCORE

• Columbia International 3, Mid-America Christian 0 (25-14, 25-20, 25-22)
  • Mid-America Christian (20-14)
  • Columbia International (27-7)

TOP PERFORMERS

• Alica Obusekova – 9 Kills, 8 Digs
• Mia Benson – 6 Kills, .364 ATK%, 2 Digs
• Marcela Nalin – 6 Kills, .462 ATK%, 6 Digs
• Casady McKinney – 11 Assists, 8 Kills, 5 Digs
• Madison Lee – 18 Assists, 7 Digs
• Ryley Bowden – 12 Digs

MATCH SUMMARY

• Set One
  • While Mid-America Christian opened by scoring three of the first five rallies, a side-out kill by Columba International's Zcerea James allowed the Rams to go on an unstoppable 13-2 run heading into the second half of the set and giving CIU a 15-5 advantage.
  • MACU got a pair of side-out terminations from Casady McKinney and Mia Benson over the next three points, CIU seized its largest lead of the contest by winning the next four rallies to make it 20-7.
  • Following a pair of side-outs, MACU tried to battle back by scoring three-unanswered on a CIU service error to go with an Obusekova kill and a Madison Lee service ace, but the Evangels found themselves in too large of a hole as the Rams scored four of the next seven to seal the 25-14 result.
• Set Two
  • The Evangels were much more up to the task in the second set as MACU utilized a pair of early 3-0 runs through the first 23 rallies as back-to-back points off a setting miscue and a Mia Benson ace allowed MACU to hold a 12-11 lead.
  • Unfortunately, MACU couldn't make it last as a Katelynn Mundy kill ignited a string of five-straight to start an 8-2 CIU surge. The Rams captured their largest lead of the set when Mary Norwood mashed a kill to make it 19-14.
  • MACU refused to go away as another McKinney termination and a CIU setting error allowed the Evangels to close it to 19-16. However, the Evangels couldn't climb any closer as the Rams held off the rally for the 25-20 win.
• Set Three
  • A string of four-straight to start the third set the tone for CIU as the Rams maintained a comfortable lead through the first half before eventually growing it out to 16-10 on another James kill.
  • The Evangels refused to go down quietly, utilizing a 4-1 streak featuring a pair of kills from Obusekova and one for Seyi Atolagbe to trim the deficit in-half at 17-14.
  • While CIU managed to keep MACU from climbing no closer than three over the next nine rallies, the Evangels once again refused to go away with another 4-1 surge by getting a kill apiece from Atolagbe, Obusekova, McKinney, and Marcela Nalin, even surviving back-to-back match points to bring it to 24-22.
  • However, CIU finally finished the match on Lydia Gustafson's kill to round out the 25-22 final.

MATCH NOTES

• Mid-America Christian just couldn't find an answer to stop Columbia International's incredibly efficient offensive attack as the Rams recorded 49 kills and only three errors for a .426 hitting percentage. Despite the three-set defeat, MACU did not have a bad outing in its own attack, mashing 36 kills with 13 miscues for a .205 hitting clip.
• MACU was unable to do much in the blocking game to slow down CIU's attack as the Evangels tied their season low in blocks with only one rejection while the Rams notched six in the three-set affair.
• Alica Obusekova led MACU's attack with nine kills while Casady McKinney chipped in with eight to go with 11 assists and five digs, but both hitters struggled in their efficiency against CIU's tough defense.
• Mia Benson and Marcela Nalin provided a spark for MACU's attack as Benson posted six kills on a .364 clip while Nalin nailed down six of her own on a team-best .462 clip to go with six shovels in the defense.
• Madison Lee led MACU's distribution efforts with 18 assists to go with seven shovels while Ryley Bowden led the back row with 12 digs.
• Facing the high-profile CIU program for the fourth time in the last five years, the Evangels were still unable to find their first win, falling to 0-4 against the program that's won two NCCAA National Championships and a National Runner-Up in that time frame.

SEASON RECAP

• Despite the heart-wrenching outcome, Mid-America Christian still hung its head on another highly successful 2025 campaign. Overall, the Evangels wrapped up the year with a 20-14 overall record while finishing tied for third in the Sooner Athletic Conference standings with a 14-8 league mark.
• Under sixth-year head coach Holly McKamie, MACU has won 20 or more matches in each of the last five seasons, winning 19 in her first year with the program in 2020-21 while competing at the NCCAA National Championships in seven-straight campaigns.
• The Evangels had several award recipients throughout the year, which included Seyi Atolagbe being named the SAC Freshman of the Year and the program getting four All-SAC honorees on the first two teams for the first time in program history with Ryley Bowden garnering First Team honors while Alica Obusekova and Casady McKinney collected Second Team acclaim.
• Competing in a strong Central Region grouping, MACU also had three earn All-NCCAA Central Region acclaim with Atolagbe receiving a First Team nod with Obusekova and Bowden basking Second Team honors.
• With it coming to an end, Atolagbe put together one of the most historic seasons for a MACU attacker in program history, blowing away the program's NAIA Era (2007-present) single season hitting percentage record at .379, surpassing the previous mark set by Hannah Luedtke (2015) when she finished the year with 160 kills and 24 errors on 419 swings for a .325 attack rate. Overall, Atolagbe finished second on the team with 286 kills and recorded only 48 errors on 628 attacks.
• Also on the individual level, Alica Obusekova recorded the ninth-most kills in a single season (356) while decently hitting for a .212 attack rate from the outside.
• Casady McKinney finished the year with 819 assists for the seventh-most in a year, sitting just one shy of Calle Solie (820, 2012) for sixth in the book. McKinney and Solie are two of the best to ever set for MACU as both players have combined for seven of the top nine spots in the program's single season assists book.
• Ryley Bowden made mark in the aces and digs season records list. With her 54 aces, Bowden tied Kaylie Walker for the fourth-most. On the digs list, Bowden's 546 digs and 4.44 shovels per set ranks as the seventh-best marks in each category.
• On-top of her sensational attacking, Atolagbe also made some marks on MACU's single season blocks list, as her 82 rejections ranks as the 10^th most while both her and Mia Benson tied for the eighth-most assisted blocks with 75 apiece.
• On the team front, Mid-America Christian put together one of its best offensive campaigns in program history. The Evangels wrapped up the year averaging 12.6 kills per set, tying for the third-highest clip while also hitting for a .200 attack percentage for the third-best attack rate. With MACU averaging 11.8 assists per set, MACU also posted the third-best average in that department as well.
• The Evangels also continued to be an excellent serving team with 244 aces for the fifth-most in a year while the 2.0 per set average sits in a three-way tie for the second-best rate, only behind the 2023 campaign when MACU notched a 2.1.

CAREER CAPSTONES

• For the MACU seniors in Casady McKinney, Ryley Bowden, Sydney Martin, and Alica Obusekova, the squad of four wrapped up their sensational careers with some incredible marks.
  • Casady McKinney
    • Became the first player in program history to eclipse 200 career service aces (202) while finishing fourth on the aces per set list at 0.39.
    • Is one of only two setters to eclipse 3000 career assists (3159) and only one of four to average more than six assists per set (6.12) while competing in a 6-2 setter rotation for a good portion of her career.
    • Finished fifth on the career digs list with 1268, by far and away the most shovels for a setter in program history.
    • Competed in 516 sets over her four-year MACU career, the third-most for any player.
    • Became the program's first ever SAC Setter of the Year (2024) and is the only player in team history to receive four All-SAC recognitions, earning First Team honors in 2024, Second Team acclaim in 2023 and 2025, as well as an Honorable Mention selection in 2022 before the league introduced a Third Team in 2025.
  • Ryley Bowden
    • Is one of only three Evangels in the NAIA Era to eclipse 1400 career digs (1409), ranking third on the list while finishing with the seventh-best digs per set (3.15) clip despite not being named the team's starting libero until her junior campaign.
    • Became only the third Evangel in the NAIA Era to eclipse 150 career aces (151), tying Kaylie Walker (2018-21) for that mark while seventh-best per set rate (0.34).
    • Ranks 10^th on MACU's career sets played list at 447.
    • Led the SAC in total digs (546) in 2025.
    • Earned two All-SAC recognitions with First Team honors in 2025 and receiving an Honorable Mention nod in 2024.
  • Sydney Martin
    • Wrapped up her MACU career in second on the program's service aces list (185) while posting the fifth-best per set average (0.37).
    • Finished sixth in the programs career digs list (1266).
    • Became only the fourth Evangel to eclipse 500 career sets played, ranking fourth on the list (504).
    • Received the highly distinguished Deb Thompson Award in 2024, the highest recognition of Christian character presented by the NCCAA.
  • Alica Obusekova
    • Tallied the fifth-best kills per set clip (2.69) on MACU's career list while notching the ninth-most career kills (648), ranking as the second-most for an Evangels player that competed in only two seasons with the program.
    • Wrapped up her best season (2025) with the third-most kills in the SAC (356) on the fourth-best kills per set clip (3.02).