DES MOINES, IA- Grand View sent the campus into spring break with a big celebration as they took an exciting win over William Penn. The top ten matchup saw the Vikings and Statesmen play 5 full sets before they were able to crown a winner. The Vikings come out on top after scores of 25-19, 24-26, 25-19, 22-25, & 15-12. 
 
The Vikings didn't mess around in the first set as they quickly jumped out to a 10-3 lead after a massive Daniel Galili kill that ignited the crowd forcing a Statesmen timeout. Galili would keep the momentum out of the timeout as he hit a crafty serve to pick up the 100^th ace of his career. The teams would trade errors for a handful of points before the Statesmen were able to climb within 4 points of the Vikings in the later portion of the 1^st set. The Vikings would not let them get any closer than that at any point in the match as Bayron Valdez-Pena sealed the first set win with a pair of kills, 25-19. 
 
The second set saw the Statesmen come out with a higher level of intensity than in the first set, but the Vikings were still about to grab a quick lead 6-3. Ryan Griffel was a big factor in the early going as he picked up an early kill adding to his .667 hitting % for the first two sets. Nothing came easy for either team throughout the second set as neither team held a lead larger than 4 points for more than one possession. The Vikings would rally back from 4 points down and call a timeout trailing 23-22. They were able to tie the score and force extra points but couldn't seal the deal as they fell 26-24 
 
The Vikings came out with a purpose in the 3^rd set as they opened with a Guilherme Domdei Goedert ace before a pair of Valdez kills set the tone for a 3-0 lead. But like the second set nothing came easy as the teams would have to fight through long rallies for any points. Leonardo Annichini came alive this set as he picked up an ace and handful of kills to bring the crowd alive. Grand View would stretch their lead out to 6 points twice in the set with big help from their defense as Goedert and Griffel would combine on some blocks to shut the Statesmen down. Daniel Wong would finish the set with a kill as the Vikings take an important 2-1 lead after a 25-19 set win. 
 
Keeping with the theme of this matchup between two of the top teams in the country the 4^th set started with an impressively long rally before Griffel collected the kill. The Statesmen would respond with a short tun to take an early lead before the Vikings took a timeout to regroup. It take a few possessions before the Vikings were able to find their groove again as they slowly chipped away at the Statesmen lead getting back within 1 point at 18-19. It wouldn't be enough as the Statesmen tied the game up at 2 sets a piece after a 25-22 win. 
 
The Final set of the night would see the Vikings jump out to a 5-1 lead before the Statesmen took a timeout to regroup but the Vikings wouldn't slow down as they would score two more points after group of difficult to return serves from Valdez. The Statesmen wouldn't go away through as they chipped into the Vikings lead before Wong took the momentum back with a kill over the Statesmen wall of defenders. Before Wong and Valdez combined for a block sparking a little frustration from the Statesmen. Valdez's 4 kills in the final set helped close out the win for the Vikings 15-12. 
 
GAME NOTES: 

•  Grand View moves to 8-0 in conference play, and won 8 in a row
• Galili added 4 aces and collected his 100^th career ace
•  The Vikings hit .700% in the first set
•  Collected 63 total skills
• Goedert collected 54 assists 

 
WHAT'S NEXT? 
The Vikings travel to Parkville, MO Tuesday Night for their next match as they take on another top 10 team in the 3^rd ranked Park University Pirates. The match is slated to start at 7:00PM.