Kirkwood faced Vianney in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Thursday. The Pioneers won by a set and slipped past the Golden Griffins 3-2. The victory was familiar territory for the Pioneers, who have now won three matchups in a row.
Kirkwood took Vianney into a fifth set where they got it done with a five-point win. The final score came out to 25-17, 25-22, 22-25, 17-25, 15-10.
Luke Martinez paced Kirkwood's offense, picking up 18 kills. Martinez got some help from Alec Gates and his 41 assists. Gates was also solid from the service line: he led the team with three aces.
Jack Brennell and Mitchell Jugo certainly did their best on Thursday to avoid the loss. Brennell had 12 digs and two assists, while Jugo had 22 kills and 12 digs. Jugo is on a roll when it comes to kills, as he's now had five or more in each of the last 28 games he's played dating back to last season.
Pioneers
| 05/15/25 vs Vianney | 3-2 |
| 05/14/25 vs Webster Groves | 3-1 |
| 04/30/25 vs Eureka | 3-2 |
| 04/29/25 vs Seckman | 3-0 |
| 04/22/25 vs Oakville | 3-1 |
| 04/17/25 vs Parkway West | 3-2 |
Kirkwood's win was their sixth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 14-6. As for Vianney, they have been struggling recently as they've lost three of their last four games. That's put a noticeable dent in their 14-11-1 record this season.
As of now, neither Kirkwood nor Vianney have any future games scheduled.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
