Ace barrage helps Dike-New Hartford sweep Kuemper

CEDAR RAPIDS — The aim of aggressive serving is to get the opponent out of system, keep it from getting a clean hit.

If the aces flow, that's just gravy.

'That's an extra benefit,' Dike-New Hartford Coach Diane Harms said.

There were extra benefits all around for the second-ranked Wolverines in their Class 3A semifinal at the state volleyball tournament Thursday afternoon at the U.S. Cellular Center. They served a dozen aces and swept No. 4 Carroll Kuemper, 25-22, 25-23, 29-27.

'We practice a lot in serving and serve reception,' junior Baylee Petersen said. 'That's the first touch, the first offense of the point. If you don't serve aggressively, it gives the other team a lot of options.'

Madison Lavenz had half of the Wolverines' 12 aces, and four different players reached double figures in kills as DNH (47-5) advanced to Friday's championship match. They'll face top-ranked Union (40-4) — a four-set victor over Mount Vernon — at 2:30 p.m.

Union beat DNH in a five-set regular-season match.

'They've got dominant hitters, so we'll have to come up with a game plan,' Harms said.

Aggressive serving will be a part of that, to be sure.

Dike-New Hartford won four consecutive Class 2A titles from 2011 through 2014. A growing enrollment moved the Wolverines up a class this year.

'Volleyball is so competitive, it doesn't really matter what class we are,' Harms said. 'We'll develop new rivals.'

Kuemper (29-2) was right in the thick of all three sets, but the Wolverines always made the biggest plays at the most critical times. That included Lavenz's final ace to end the match.

Amber Rickert led the Wolverines with 13 kills. Lavenz added 12, Haleigh Durnin 11, Petersen 10. Madison Hedges dished out 40 assists.

Kara Peter had 15 kills for Kuemper.

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