CLINTON, Iowa - Watch a volleyball match without a scoreboard, and still it's possible to tell who's winning: look for the team that isn't scrambling to keep the ball in play.

Too often Tuesday night, Davenport Central was reacting to Dubuque Hempstead's setting the offensive tone and not doing enough sustained tone-setting of its own. As a result, the fourth-ranked Mustangs overcame an early 11-4 first-game deficit to sweep the Blue Devils 25-21, 25-17 and 25-19, in the Class 4A Region 7 final.

"We just kind of lost it (defensively), and once you lose something, everything starts getting off: our serves, our sets and our hits start missing. That's what really destroyed us," said senior setter Shaina Barnes. "We came out strong in the first game, and (after Hempstead rallied), in the second game we figured we were going to bring it back up, but we shut down.

"And when we shut down, it takes a while to get back up."

Michelle Ames and Kendra Barnes combined for 17 kills and 20 digs to lead the Blue Devils (19-10), who graduate seven seniors one match short of the U.S. Cellular Center and state, which kicks off next week.

"Their leadership was outstanding. All seven played huge roles; they set the standards and everyone else followed," Central coach Amber Hall said of her seniors.

"We had a really good season; we were the only undefeated team in the MAC, and that was the first time in so long that that happened," Shaina Barnes added. "I'm really proud, all of us seniors are really proud, and glad we got this far."