OSKALOOSA, IOWA - In a match of great significance for the conference standings, the 5th-ranked Grand View men's volleyball team journeyed to Oskaloosa, Iowa, to face off against the 4th-ranked Statesmen. Despite a strong start from the Vikings, the Statesmen managed to push the match to five sets. In the end, Grand View emerged victorious, securing a crucial series win over WPU. The set scores were 25-22, 27-25, 25-23, 25-18, and 16-14.
 
What was an even match across the board got off to a quick start as Grand View stormed back down 4-1 in the early serves. The Vikings would see their first lead of the match after Andre Lucas Alves Leandro sent one down the middle to go up 14-13. A kill from Leonardo Annichini and a WPU side out would force the Statesmen into a timeout as GV led 20-16. Grand View would solidify a 1-0 lead after Galili sailed one into the ground, taking set one, 25-22.
 
The Vikings dug a hole early in the second set, trailing again. After a couple of errors from the Statesmen and three straight kills from middle Ryan Griffel, Grand View found themselves back within one. After racing past match point, the Statesmen would take set two 27-25 after a Viking side out.
 
Grand View would secure a tight third set, advancing one set away from a match win and hitting their second-highest percentage of the evening at .379%. The Vikings, however, would struggle in the fourth set offensively, unable to secure the match as William Penn forced a fifth.
 
The final set of the evening started all Statesmen, as they again jumped out to an early lead. A kill from Galili knotted things at four apiece. As the teams approached double digits, a side out and a kill from the Statesmen gave them the insurance lead. The 5th-ranked Vikings picked up their first lead of the fifth set after Bayron Valdez Pena put one down. The Vikings sat at match-point for three straight serves, unable to finish the match. Another Valdez kill would put the Vikings up one at 15-14, and a WPU attacking error would decide the fifth set as Grand View escaped with a massive win over William Penn.

Team Notes

• With the victory, the Vikings move into the No. 1 spot in the Heart ahead of today's match-ups.  
• Daniel Galili finishes with 21 kills, his 16th match this season in double-digit kills. 
• Guilherme Domdei Goedert finishes with a season-high 59 assists. 
• Dalton Dencklau recorded 14 digs to match his season high back on February 24th. 

UP NEXT?
Grand View finishes out the regular season next Tuesday, April 9th at 7:00 p.m. as they host the Pirates of Park University for a senior night rematch.