Mitchell, S.D. – No. 18 Dakota Wesleyan volleyball started the match off slow against the receiving votes of Dakota State, dropping the opening set by five points. The Tigers, backed by another packed Fosness Arena, did not disappoint as fans received another action-packed five-set win.
The Quick Details
Score:
#18 DWU 3 – (RV) DSU 2 (20-25, 25-23, 25-19, 17-25, 15-11)
Records:
#18 DWU 12-3 Overall
(RV) DSU 11-9 Overall
How it Happened
The (RV) Trojans got a jump on the No. 18 Tigers in the opening set: going up by as much as 12-6. Dakota Wesleyan grabbed a time-out shortly after that to slow down the attack by DSU. Once DWU was back on the court, they were able to charge back into the game, cutting the DSU lead to only one point, 15-14, after a few long rallies. Dakota State followed with a four-point run of their own, pushing their lead back to five points, where it stayed for the remainder of the set. The Tigers did make another small run late in the opening set as Mariah Gloe, Mackenzie Miller, and Emily Dale all recorded kills cutting the deficit back to two points, 20-18. DWU earned two more points on two more Miller kills before DSU went on a five-point streak to claim the opening set.
Set number two was a battle for both squads. The Tigers got the jump on DSU early with a three-point lead at 10-7; thanks to kills from Ady Dwight, Gloe, Miller, and Dale. The Trojans also committed several errors of their own early on helping DWU earn that quick lead. DSU got a small three-point run rolling after a Trojan kill and DWU attacking error, bringing the set back even at 12-12. Once DSU got the 13-12 lead, head coach Lindsay Wilber called a timeout to regroup her squad. Following the timeout, Abigail Brunsing got in the offensive mix with a kill of her own to equal the score once again. Tya Weideman put DWU back on top by one right after with a service ace 14-13. Once Dakota State tied the match, again, at 14-14; there were three more scenarios where the game was tied. Dwight tied the set at 15-15 after Madeline Else set her up for a kill that put Fosness Arena on its feet. Else stuffed her stat sheet as well notching one of several kills in the match, putting the Tigers up 16-15. Dakota State drew back even shortly after at 17-17 but was never able to take switch the score and lead. The remainder of the second set had small runs by both the Tigers and Trojans but were disrupted each time by a timeout from the opposing coach. Dakota Wesleyan drew the overall match even at 1-1 after the 25-23 set two win.
The third set was all Dakota Wesleyan as they got the lead early, capitalized on the Trojan errors, and never let it go. DWU jumped out a fast 6-3 lead that forced a DSU timeout in hopes to break up the momentum, but DWU went on to get two more points to lead 8-3 before Dakota State was able to light up the scoreboard again. After the Trojans came back with three kills in a row, cutting the Tiger lead to 9-7, Miller gave DWU another kill in the book and a 10-7 lead. Once Dakota State marched back into the set knotting the score at 13-13, the Tigers began to spread the attacking efforts around. Dakota Wesleyan was holding strong to this point, keeping their errors low while allowing DSU to make several helping DWU extend their lead again. After the Tigers earned their 18th point of the set to lead by four, DSU called for a hiatus in play that proved not to slow down the DWU attack as they had three unanswered points after that. Dakota State eventually got two points on DWU errors and a kill before the Tigers grabbed a timeout of their own. Once play resumed, Dakota Wesleyan posted a service ace from Gloe and two attacking errors by the Trojans to win set three 25-19 and lead 2-1 in the match.
Set four was a different story as Dakota State was able to barricade the Tiger offense, forcing nine attacking errors and holding DWU to their lowest hitting percentage of the night at .118. Dakota Wesleyan came within three points of tying the set but was unable to snap the momentum DSU had built. The Tigers and Trojans posted several long rallies in set four with DSU capitalizing on those to keep their rhythm. Dakota Wesleyan and Dakota State came back even in the match at 2-2 after the Trojans grabbed the 25-17 fourth-set win.
Entering the fifth and final set. The Tigers sat at 2-2 in five-set matches this season, just coming off a huge upset win against No. 13 CSM in five sets over the weekend. This fifth set was no different. DWU and DSU went back and forth through a 6-6 score until a Trojan attacking error put the Tigers on top once again and they had some momentum in the match. DWU was the first team to the magical eighth point, leading 8-6 as they switched sides for the final time. With the home crowd in front of their bench and the student section behind them, The Tigers were able to get a four-point lead over DWU on a Miller kill and a Brunsing and Dale block. Dakota State made two more errors in the match, one being a service error and another being an attacking error, while the Tigers earned the final kills from Brunsing and Dwight to keep the home court clean during the annual Blue & White days of Dakota Wesleyan Homecoming.
The Tigers hit their best in the second set, slamming down 17 kills on 54 total attacks and only five errors for a .222 hitting percentage. Overall, Dakota State outhit Dakota Wesleyan .193 percent to .167 percent in the match. The victory was also big for several players as they recorded new career and season highs. Dwight's 25 kills tied the previous career high she set during the five-set heavy-weight bout with No. 4 Jamestown. Else smashed her previous career high, putting up a staggering 62 assists in the match, while also putting up 18 digs and three kills. Hanna Reiff also set a new career-high posting 38 digs. She also added in six assists and a pair of service aces. Tya Weideman cashed in on 21 digs, setting herself a new career high. Freshman, Emily Dale also raised her career high to ten kills, while also posting three blocks. Gloe chipped in on both the offense and defense with 11 kills and 20 digs. Miller recorded 15 kills in the match, just shy of matching her season high.
Up Next
Tiger volleyball hits the road for three games after the new NAIA National Coaches Poll is released tomorrow. DWU will travel south for a Friday and Saturday match as they jump back into GPAC play. As the rankings sit currently, No. 18 DWU will face unranked Hasting on Friday, September 30 in a 7:30 p.m. match, then; on Saturday; the Tigers will face unranked Doane that match is set to get underway at 3 p.m. from Crete, Nebraska.
