Avila Volleyball Matches Against Benedictine Canceled

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Avila University Department of Athletics has announced that the volleyball matches scheduled for Thursday, August 25 against Benedictine at Mabee Fieldhouse have been canceled. They will not be rescheduled.

This decision was made jointly by the two universities and comes as the Avila community continues to process and react to the news of the death of football student-athlete Justin Barbee, who passed away in a car accident on Tuesday night.

In the best interests of all involved, including the staffs and players on both teams, it was determined that the best course of action would be to cancel the varsity reserve and varsity matches that had been scheduled for 5 PM and 7 PM, respectively, on Thursday night. Benedictine does not currently have any dates open on its schedule, so the matches will not be rescheduled for the time being. The hot dog lunch planned for Wednesday will be rescheduled.

As of Wednesday afternoon, all other Avila events planned for this weekend are currently on as originally scheduled. This includes a road match for reserve volleyball on Friday, a road match for men's soccer on Saturday, women's soccer against Park at The Z on Friday, and volleyball's home triangular against Baker and St. Mary-of-the-Woods on Saturday afternoon in Mabee Fieldhouse. Any changes made to this schedule will be formally announced when necessary.

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