The Dordt Defender men's volleyball team used timely scoring runs, efficient offense and strong serving pressure to defeat Clarke in straight sets, 25-18, 25-18, 25-19 in Dubuque, Iowa on Friday night. Dordt hit .385 as a team and controlled momentum throughout the match, responding to early deficits and using extended scoring runs in all three sets to secure the conference road win.

Box Score (PDF)

Dordt established early control in the opening set, turning a 2-1 lead into a 5-1 advantage with a Cade Schmidt kill off a Joseph Jang set, followed by consecutive Clarke attack errors and a Cory Kuperus finish assisted by Jang. Clarke answered and trimmed the deficit to 10-7, but Dordt pushed the lead back to five points when Lance Vermeer and Kai Chapman each recorded kills. Leading 15-10, Dordt produced a key 3-1 run fueled by a Nicodemus Elliott kill, a Van Groningen-Vermeer block and another Elliott finish to extend the lead to 18-11. Clarke closed within 22-17 before Dordt finished the set by scoring three of the final four points, including an Elliott kill and a Vermeer termination from McCullough Unruh for the 25-18 win. Dordt totaled 15 kills with no errors in the set and hit .652.

The second set featured Dordt overcoming an early deficit before taking control with its most decisive run of the match. Clarke built a 5-2 lead, but Dordt answered with a 5-2 stretch to tie the set at 7-7, highlighted by an Elliott kill and a block by Elliott and Kuperus. With the score tied at 9-9, Dordt surged ahead with four straight points as Joel Van Groningen delivered two kills and Cade Schmidt added another finish for a 13-9 lead. Dordt extended the run into a dominant 9-2 stretch overall, pushing the lead to 18-11. Justin Hofman sparked the surge with a service ace, Van Groningen added another kill and Clarke committed multiple attack errors under pressure. Clarke was unable to close the gap as Schmidt delivered two late kills and Hofman ended the set with a service ace to complete the 25-18 victory.

Clarke grabbed early momentum in the third set, using a Tanner May service ace and a Micah Dancy kill to build a 5-1 lead. Dordt responded immediately with a 7-1 run to seize control of the set. Cade Schmidt started the rally with consecutive kills, and Justin Hofman added back-to-back service aces to give Dordt an 8-6 lead. A Kuperus-Elliott block and another Schmidt kill pushed the margin to 11-9, and Dordt extended the advantage to 14-9 with continued net pressure. Clarke later trimmed the lead to 17-14, but Dordt answered with a decisive 4-1 run featuring kills by Nicodemus Elliott and Joel Van Groningen along with Clarke attack errors to build a 21-15 cushion. Dordt maintained control down the stretch and ended the match on a Lance Vermeer kill assisted by Jang for the 25-19 final.
Dordt improves to 13-4 overall and 5-2 in conference play.  Dordt will face Mount Mercy on Saturday, February 28 at 1pm
 
Team Statistics

• Kills: Dordt 39/Clarke 32
• Attack Percentage: Dordt .385/Clarke .159
• Assists: Dordt 38/Clarke 29
• Service Aces: Dordt 5/Clarke 2
• Blocks: Dordt 16/Clarke 4
• Digs: Dordt 26/Clarke 24

Dordt Individual Leaders

• Cade Schmidt: 11 kills, .688 hitting, 3 block assists
• Joel Van Groningen: 9 kills
• Nicodemus Elliott: 7 kills, .600 hitting, 4 block assists
• Lance Vermeer: 6 kills, .556 hitting, 3 block assists
• Cory Kuperus: 4 kills, 5 block assists
• Joseph Jang: 15 assists
• Justin Hofman: 12 assists, 4 service aces

 
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