GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - St. Norbert College almost snatched defeat from the jaws of victory and then snatched victory from the jaws of defeat in a pulsating 3-2 win over Calvin University at the Calvin Tournament at Van Noord Arena.
The Green Knights (4-6) topped the Knights 25-21, 25-21, 25-27, 23-25, 16-14. St. Norbert had five match points in the third set after holding a 24-19 lead and then had to rally from a 14-13 deficit in the decisive fifth set.
St. Norbert almost paid the price for not closing out sets, including after leads of 12-8 and 13-11 in Set 5. Calvin went on a 3-0 run to take a 14-13 lead for match point, but the Green Knights responded with a pair of kills from Jacob Van Ooyen and an unassisted kill by
Kade Nelson to clinch the win.
The Green Knights took an early 8-4 lead in Set 1 behind a pair of Nelson service aces. St. Norbert led by as many as six point before Calvin cut it to two late before the victory took a 1-0 lead after a host service error. The second set featured 13 ties and four lead changes, with St. Norbert going on a 5-0 run after an 18-18 tie for a 2-0 lead.
St. Norbert appeared to be in control in Set 3, leading 19-13 and still led 24-19. Calvin then rallied behind a kill, three St. Norbert attacking errors and two Calvin service aces for a 25-24 lead. Following a St. Norbert point, Calvin scored twice to win the deuce set and swing momentum its way. The Green Knights trailed most of Set 4, including 21-17 before getting to within 23-22 and 24-23 before eventually settling for a 2-2 tie and head to the fifth-set tiebreaker.
St. Norbert hit .240 for the match, posting a school-record 65 kills against 28 errors in 154 attempts.
Kaden Kornaus (pictured) had 18 kills, while Nelson added 14 and Van Ooyen and
Bennett Kornaus nine each.
Michael Whitney had 54 assists, one shy of a school record. Nelson finished with four service aces.
Bennett Kornaus had a career-high 14 digs, while
Zach Hanse added nine digs. Whitney, Nelson,
Kaden Kornaus and
Barry Applewhite all had three blocks apiece.
Calvin hit .199 for the match, with 51 kills against 24 errors in 136 attempts. Gabriel Laughlin had a team-high 11 kills.
