Other than one brief blip, it’s business as usual for No. 1 Dike-New Hartford

CORALVILLE — By Dike-New Hartford standards, it wasn’t a great stretch.

But given the timing, it was harmless.

The top-ranked Wolverines shrugged off a hiccup late in the first set and swept No. 11 Carroll Kuemper (25-20, 25-11, 25-14) in a Class 2A quarterfinal at the state volleyball tournament Tuesday afternoon at Xtream Arena.

“(Kuemper) got going there. They showed us what they could do,” DNH senior Sophia Folkers said. “They had us back on our heels a little bit.”

But not for long.

Dike-New Hartford (43-2) recovered and regained its mojo and advanced. The Wolverines will face No. 4 Hinton (27-2) in a 2A semifinal at 4 p.m. Wednesday.

DNH shot to a 21-8 lead to start the match before Kuemper (38-5) scored 10 of 11 points to make it relatively close before the Wolverines closed it out.

“Kuemper had a good finish to that set. We had to come back and re-establish and close it out,” DNH Coach Diane Harms said.

Dike-New Hartford is one of three traditional giants (along with Western Christian and Dubuque Wahlert) that have dominated the state’s volleyball landscape.

Each team, each year is different. This year’s identity?

“They play well together,” said Harms, who has more than 1,000 career victories. “A lot of kids can step up and do different things for us. They play well and do things correctly.”

The Wolverines are making their 32nd state appearance and are chasing their 16th championship.

Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com