Courtesy of Midland Athletics
SIOUX CENTER, Iowa – No. 17-ranked Midland University was on the road Saturday, traveling to take on Dordt University in a Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) match in Sioux Center, Iowa. The Warriors were looking to extend their recent dominance in the series, having won the last eight meetings, but the Defenders came back to win in five sets, 25-14, 23-25, 22-25, 25-23, 15-9.
Playing in front of a large crowd, Dordt jumped out to a quick 10-2 lead thanks to three service aces. The momentum continued as a five-point run made it 15-3, forcing Midland to use its final timeout. That stoppage sparked a four-point run for the Warriors, but Dordt’s massive lead was too much to overcome. The Defenders closed out the first set with five straight points, winning 25-14.
The teams traded points evenly through the first dozen points of the second set. Dordt used a quick rally to gain an advantage and kept the Warriors at arm’s length. Leading 22-16, Dordt’s lead began to slip as Midland went on a five-point run to pull within one, 22-21. After giving up a point on a missed serve, Midland closed out the set with a four-point rally, winning 25-23 and tying the match.
In the third, Midland fell behind early but rallied to force a 12-12 tie. The teams were tied two more times before the Warriors took over with a quick run to go up 21-17. Dordt pulled within one, but Midland closed out the third, winning 25-22 to take a 2-1 lead in the match.
The trend of slow starts continued for the Warriors in the fourth set as they fell behind 5-1. Dordt maintained the lead throughout most of the set. Midland kept battling, working its way to a 20-20 tie. After two more ties, Dordt earned set point on a kill and evened the match with an ace, winning 25-23.
Dordt carried its momentum into the deciding fifth set, taking the first three points in the race to 15. Midland was unable to find its rhythm, managing just one sustained rally before falling 15-9 and dropping the match.
Midland finished with a .155 hitting percentage, while Dordt posted .216. Leading the charge for the Warriors were Brooklynn Snyder with 19 kills and Abree Plueger with 11. Close behind were Macey Jackson and Lauren Jones, each with eight kills.
Jaysa Wentzlaff led the team with 23 set assists, followed by Brena Mackling with 19. Defensively, Midland had six blocks, with Cameran Jansky contributing to four and Jones assisting on three. In the back row, Claire Johnson had 11 digs to pace the team, while Sydney Guthard added nine.
Midland (14-8, 9-3 GPAC) will look to rebound from the tough road loss next week when it returns home to face the College of Saint Mary (12-10, 5-6 GPAC). The Warriors host the Flames on Wednesday, Oct. 22, inside the Wikert Event Center. First serve is set for 7:30 p.m. in Fremont, Nebraska.
