Behind a dominant defensive performance, the Dordt University Defenders secured a hard-fought four-set victory (25-23, 25-21, 21-25, 25-17) over Missouri Baptist University on Friday night. The win moves the Defenders to 3-2 on the season in Heart of America Athletic Association play and 11-4 overall. Dordt will face the University of Health Sciences & Pharmacy on Saturday morning at 11:00.
Box Score (PDF)
Dordt wasted no time establishing control in the opening set. Sparked by the setting of
Joseph Jang, the Defenders jumped out to a commanding 7-1 lead, forced by a pair of
Joel Van Groningen service aces. Missouri Baptist slowly chipped away at the deficit with a series of kills from Nikos Faoutas to pull within one at 17-16.
After a Dordt timeout, the Defenders regained their composure.
Nicodemus Elliott and Van Groningen delivered kills to extend the lead back to 22-18. Despite a late 3-1 spurt by the Spartans to make it 24-23,
Cade Schmidt hammered home the set-winner to give Dordt the early advantage.
The second frame mirrored the first, with Dordt jumping ahead 13-9 following a Jang service ace and a Van Groningen kill. The Spartans struggled with efficiency, committing several attack errors that allowed the Defenders to maintain a comfortable cushion.
Missouri Baptist threatened late, narrowing the gap to 19-16, but the Dordt front row proved too much. A block by
Cory Kuperus and Elliott sparked a closing run, and
Kai Chapman slammed the door with a kill to take the set 25-21.
Missouri Baptist refused to go quietly in the third set. The Spartans jumped out to an early lead and utilized a devastating 7-0 scoring run mid-set to turn a narrow 11-12 deficit into an 18-12 lead.
The Defenders attempted a late comeback, fueled by kills from Van Groningen and
Lance Vermeer, cutting the lead to 23-20. However, the Spartans held firm, capitalizing on a late Dordt attack error to take the set 25-21 and force a fourth frame.
Determined to finish the match, Dordt dominated the fourth set from the service line and the net. An early 6-2 lead was highlighted by three consecutive blocks involving Kuperus, Schmidt, and Elliott.
The defining moment came with
Bradley Neff at the service line. Leading 13-10, Neff sparked a 4-0 run that included a service ace and two Spartan errors, ballooning the lead to 17-10. Missouri Baptist could not recover, and a final attack error by the Spartans handed Dordt the 25-17 set win and the match.
Dordt Leaders
Team Comparisons
- Â Kills: Dordt 50, Missouri Baptist 55.
- Kill Efficiency (K%): Dordt .277, Missouri Baptist .206.
- Â Service Aces: Dordt 8, Missouri Baptist 2.
- Service Errors: Missouri Baptist 12, Dordt 11.
- Points from Blocks: Dordt 16.5 points, Missouri Baptist 7.0
