DIKE – The odds of beating the four-time defending state champs were slim regardless of the circumstances.

But facing them in their cozy gymnasium that features lower than low ceilings – mission impossible.

Everything was stacked against South Hamilton here Friday night, as the Hawks were unable to cope with the diversified offense of sixth-ranked Dike-New Hartford and, yes, the ceiling, in a Class 2A Region 5 volleyball semifinal.

The Wolverines (36-9) – the queens of 2A ever since they started their gold rush in 2011 – put together sizable runs in all three sets en route to a sweep, 25-17, 25-19, 25-8.

Dike New-Hartford advanced to Wednesday’s regional final in Parkersburg where it will face seventh-ranked Grundy Center for the right to play in the state tournament later this month in Cedar Rapids. The Spartans dispatched Woodward-Granger, 3-0, in the other regional semifinal played in Marshalltown on Friday.

South Hamilton (18-9) saw its season and the careers of seniors Alyssa Hegland and Abby Elsner come to an end. Simply put, the Hawks got beaten by a better team.

“They’re a good team and they know how to play volleyball,” South Hamilton head coach Rusty Wintermote said of the Wolverines. “They were equal in all three part of their hitting. They were able to hit rights, middles and lefts … I’ve got to develop our kids into more of an equal-sided hitting squad in order to compete at this level.”

Katie Nielsen, Madison Lavenz and Baylee Petersen spurred the Wolverines’ attack. Libero Sydney Petersen was a thorn in the Hawks’ side as well when they did put a good swing on the ball.

With the sets going primarily to Hegland and Ady Wintermote on the left side, D-NH was quickly able to get its block set up and the Wolverines made it difficult on the Hawks’ hitters throughout all three stanzas. South Hamilton hit just .093 as a team.

Ady Wintermote had a team-high eight kills and hit .222, but that was considerably lower than her season average (.382). Still, the Hawks were able to remain competitive with the junior hammering away.

But when she rotated into the back row? Good night.

With Wintermote relegated to the back row, D-NH went on a 14-4 run in the opening set and comfortably cruised to take a 1-0 lead. The ceiling played a noticeable factor in rattling the visitors; passes that would be perfect in their gymnasium crashed into the ceiling and led to points for the Wolverines.

Having worked as a volleyball referee prior to taking over at the helm for South Hamilton, Rusty Wintermote said he’s been a witness to other teams struggling in the small environment, but that didn’t help his players when they were on the court.

“The ceiling caused us a lot of problems,” he said. “Were they horrible passes? No, they weren’t. Take away the low ceiling and I believe they would have been good passes. But that’s part of the game and the environment we were playing in.

“I did a horrible job of reminding the girls of the lower ceiling.”

Ady Wintermore slugged three kills early in the second set to stake the Hawks to a lead, and a pair of kills by Taylor Ratzke pushed the Hawks to their biggest advantage of the match, 12-8.

But right about then, Ady Wintermote was pushed into the back row and the Wolverines strung seven consecutive points together to take command for good.

“When your best hitter is stuck (in the back row) like that, you’re not going to win many matches,” Rusty Wintermote said. “But the girls fought and they never gave up.”

D-NH put up another 7-0 run early in the third set and South Hamilton was never able to recover.

Hegland lashed seven kills and came up with four digs in her final prep match. Ady Wintermote registered nine digs and libero Anna Moss added seven.

Setter Alissa Moss produced 15 assists and five digs. Ratzke led the defense at net with three blocks.

With the bulk of its roster returning next season, South Hamilton will head into the 2016 season with lofty aspirations.

“We’ve got to develop each hitter and if we do that we’ll be trouble to deal with for years to come,” Rusty Wintermote said.