PITTSBURGH – The Dukes (7-7, 2-1 A-10) were dealt a 3-0 loss by league-favorite Dayton (9-5, 3-0 A-10) Friday night in the home opener at UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse.
 
The Flyers won by set scores of 25-12, 25-21, 25-20.
 
Morgan Kelly (Florence, Ky./Cooper) led the Dukes with nine kills. Setter Hailey Poling (Uniontown, Ohio/Lake) dished out 22 assists and posted a team-best 11 digs, while libero Camille Spencer (Brentwood, Tenn./Ravenwood) added 10 digs.
 
The Dukes were limited to a .068 hitting percentage and 28 kills in the loss (21 errors).
 
Dayton's Lexie Almodovar finished with a match-best 13 kills to lead the Flyers.
 
Duquesne will travel to Dayton on Sunday, Oct. 3 at 1 p.m. to take on the Flyers once again. The match will broadcast on ESPN+
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Dukes fell behind 8-2 in the first set and never recovered. Kills by Summer Slade (Lancaster, N.Y./St. Mary's) and Kelly got the set back to 15-8, but DU was unable to get any closer, allowing Dayton to win 25-12.
• Duquesne came out swinging in the second set. The Dukes trailed 4-3, before going on a 7-1 run to take a 10-5 lead. DU managed to maintain the lead at 14-9 and 16-11, but an 9-1 run by the Flyers flipped the score in favor of Dayton at 20-17. The Dukes traded points with the Flyers and were unable to reclaim the lead in a 25-21 setback.
• The third set was knotted up at 6-6 when Dayton notched five-straight points to put the Dukes in an 11-6 deficit. DU brought it back to two at 12-10, but Dayton did not relinquish the lead and closed out the match with a 25-20 win.