Mitchell, S.D. – No. 10 Dakota Wesleyan volleyball took down No. 19 Dordt in the rematch from earlier this season when the Defenders got the straight set in on their home court. The Tigers have been playing extremely well at home this season and this match was no different, getting the victory in a narrow three set match.
The Quick Details
Score:
#10 DWU 3 - #19 DOR 0 (25-14, 25-21, 25-20)
Records:
#10 DWU 20-4 (GPAC 10-3)
#19 DOR 13-8 (GPAC 7-6)
How It Happened
No. 19 Dordt led the No. 10 Tigers very early in the first set by one point, 4-3, but DWU quickly flipped that to lead by two at 6-4 after a kill from Ady Dwight, a service ace from Tya Weideman and a Defenders attacking error. Dordt continued to keep the set close through the next few points, until the attacking and service errors began adding to the DWU lead. Dwight, Mackenzie Miller, and Abigail Brunsing all got in the action, pushing the Tigers margin to 13-8 before the Defenders burnt their first timeout of the set. Once play resumed, DWU continued to find holes in the Dordt defense, pushing the lead to eight, 16-8. After a nine-point lead was secured by Dwight and Miller, Dordt burnt their second timeout of the set. The Defenders chipped away after the timeout, but they only got two points cutting the deficit to 18-11 before the Tigers pushed it back out to nine on a kill from Madeline Else and a Weideman service ace. Dordt grabbed three more points in the opening set, one on a Tiger service error, a Dordt service ace and a kill. With set point nearing, Else stepped back to serve the final three points needed to take the 1-0 match lead. Miller and Gloe each grabbed a kill to help end the set along with a Miller and Emily Dale block as the Tigers got the 25-14 set one win.
Dakota Wesleyan was all over Dordt early in the second set, running away with a 10-6 lead. The Defenders kept the second set within reach though, pulling back even at 13-13. The next few points went back and forth as DWU grabbed the lead, then Dort knotted it back up again, then taking the lead at 17-16 over the Tigers. Dakota Wesleyan put on a 7-0 run after going down by one point to lead 23-17 before the Defenders notched their 18th point of the set. Dordt burnt a pair of timeouts during that span, the first one when DWU was leading 19-17, then their second one after the Tigers were leading 21-17. The Defenders made a small run of their own late in the set closing their deficit to only three points, but a costly set point service error from Dordt put them in a 2-0 debt against the Tigers who have played well at home all season.
The third and evidently the final set was close from start to finish as the Tigers were looking to send the Defenders home with a loss and Dordt was looking to stay alive and push a fourth set. Dakota Wesleyan went up 10-5 on kills from Dwight, Dale, and Gloe forcing the Defenders to call a timeout early. Once the players returned to the floor, Dordt began chipping away at the DWU lead, limiting their errors, and capitalizing on their blocking opportunities to bring the set within one point of a tie, 13-12. The Dordt lead at 16-15 was short lived though, as DWU drew the set at 17-17 before getting an assisted block from Dale and Else and a Dordt attacking error to lead 19-17. The Defenders attempted to bring the match back even again once again, but the No. 10 Tigers held strong and kept their errors to a minimum late in the set to get the 25-20 third set win and close the match.
Overall, the Tigers hit their best in the first set with 16 kills and only three errors for a .394 hitting percentage. Dordt was held to hitting under .130 all night as they racked up a total of 20 attacking errors. In the match DWU combined to hit .255 percent while Dwight led the way with 13 kills. Miller and Dale chipped in with 10 and nine kills, respectively while Gloe and Brunsing added seven and six kills each to the match. Else recorded 33 assists and nine digs while adding a pair of blocks to her stats. Dale led the way in blocks for the Tigers with four of the teams 12 total. Three other players also tallied nine total digs with Gloe, Weideman, and Reiff.
Up Next
The Tigers hit the road for the last time in the 2022 regular season as they make the road trip to Orange City, Iowa for a top-10 match up. On Wednesday, October 26, the No. 10 Tigers and No. 7 Raiders will serve things up at 7:30 p.m.. While the Tigers and Raiders play on Wednesday, the next NAIA National Coaches Poll also comes out that morning as the Tigers look to continue climb in the rankings.