Box Score The Dordt Defender men's volleyball season came to an end on Saturday afternoon, April 1 in Jamestown, North Dakota as the Jimmies dropped the Defenders 3-0 (29-27, 25-21, 25-22) in the GPAC Tournament Championship match.

Dordt had a 6-3 lead in set one but Jamestown rallied and maintained a narrow advantage until a Brady Frost and Luke Nelson block gave Dordt a 14-13 lead.  After the hosts regained the lead Dordt put together a three-point run to go from down 15-14 to up 17-15 after a pair of Dordt blocks and a Caleb Kulesza kill. Dordt appeared poised to squeak out the win with a 22-20 lead but a Jamestown kill and an attack error got the Jimmies to even. A service ace that dropped just in front of the back line broke a 23-23 tie and got Jamestown to set point.  The Jimmies never relinquished the lead, eventually winning the prolonged set 29-27.

Dordt again had an early lead in set two, getting an 8-6 advantage on an Andres Guzman kill but the Jimmies came back with a five-point run that finally ended with Guzman getting a kill. Dordt never fully recovered in the ensuing points and got no closer than two the rest of the set and lost a 25-21 decision.

The Defenders got up 9-6 on a Robert Piekarz ace serve in set three but the Jimmies again had an answer, turning a 12-11 deficit into a 14-12 lead. Jamestown was still up 16-15 when a service error tied the set and an attack error put the Defenders in front.  Brady Frost followed with a kill for the Defenders to extend the lead to 18-16. After trading points, the Defenders surrendered back-to-back points for a tie at 19 and the teams traded kills again for a 20-20 tie. Jamestown scored two of the next three points to lead 22-21 and a kill put them in the driver's seat 23-21. A Lukas Van Groningen kill got Dordt to 23-22 but back-to-back kills by the hosts gave them their 21^st win and a GPAC Tournament Championship to go with the regular season title they earned with a 9-1 GPAC record.

COACH HANSON SAID

"Our amazing season wraps up sooner than we had hoped or anticipated. This team shattered program records and continued to provide an amazing picture of what it means to be a Defender while playing this sport we love. We are grateful to our Lord for the safety He allowed us to have through thousands of attack swings, blocks, jumps and miles traveled. Soli Deo Gloria."

THE NUMBERS

• Jamestown had a 51-37 kills edge with 18 errors to Dordt's 13. Dordt hit for a .253 kill efficiency while Jamestown was at .292.
• Both teams had 13 service errors and Jamestown had two aces to Dordt's one.
• Both teams had five points on blocks.
• Caleb Kulesza led Dordt with 16 kills.
• Andres Guzman ended with 10 kills and nine digs.
• Luke Nelson had seven kills and one solo block with four block assists.
• Lukas Van Groningen accounted for 34 assists.
• Robert Piekarz got six digs with one ace serve.
• Jamestown was led by Oguhzan Oguz's 22 kills and eight digs.
• Dordt finishes the season with a 16-4 record and Jamestown advances into the NAIA National Championship with a 21-3 record.