By Scott Beasley/Delta Staff Writer

Joao Vitor Bonanoni, a sophomore from Brazil, has been recognized for his outstanding work on the Missouri Valley College men’s volleyball team. Bonanoni was recognized as the NAIA National Player of the Week after the Vikings’ upset against Park University.

Head Coach Omar Sanchez praised Bonanoni, saying that he had made his presence on the team known since his arrival.

“He made an immediate impact,” Sanchez said. “He got along really, really well with the guys on the program; just really helped us establish, you know, the sort of professionalism that you know is going to help us hopefully keep competing at a high level this year.”

Bonanoni said he was honored to receive the recognition, but added that the award wasn’t his alone.

“For me, it’s just like something that personally is like really good,” he said. “But I think it’s like it’s more like a team goal for me, you know? I cannot do points in the game. I’m Libero so I play just defense, so, like I cannot help the team doing points. But I can help a lot to make a point.”

In addition to this national recognition, Bonanoni has received the men’s volleyball defensive player of the week four straight weeks in a row. Bonanoni plans on helping his team get better every day in order to reach his number one goal: the national title.