Bronx, N.Y. – The Duquesne University volleyball team continued its five-match road swing on Saturday afternoon, sweeping Fordham in straight-sets during Atlantic 10 action inside Rose Hill Gym. With the win, the Dukes improved to 11-9 overall and 3-6 in conference play.
POINT OF EMPHASIS
Duquesne came out strong in the opening set, hitting .313 with 14 kills en route to a 25-16 win. After the teams traded points early to a 5-5 tie, the Dukes used a 5-1 run, fueled by four Fordham errors and a service ace from senior
Maggie Colenbrander to take a 10-6 lead. The Rams trimmed the deficit to 14-12, but Duquesne responded with a decisive 7-1 surge to pull away. Senior
Carsyn Henschen ignited the run with a kill, followed by three straight kills from sophomore
Emersen Schrom and a Fordham attacking error. Henschen added two more kills during the stretch, pushing the Dukes ahead 21-13. Duquesne then closed out the frame by scoring four of the final seven points to secure the opening set.
BACK-AND-FORTH AFFAIR
The second set was a back-and-forth battle featuring 18 ties and six lead changes. Trailing 21-20, Henschen evened the score with a kill before Fordham pulled ahead by two on a Duquesne error and a block from Sophia Oliveira. The Dukes rallied with three straight points to reclaim a 24-23 lead, sparked by a kill from senior
Ariel Helm and back-to-back strikes from Colenbrander and Helm. Fordham's Audrey Brown tied it again at 24, but Schrom responded with a kill to put Duquesne back in front, and a Rams miscue sealed the set for the Dukes. Duquesne hit a match-best .368 in the frame, totaling 19 kills and four blocks.
GET THE BROOMS OUT
Duquesne kept its momentum in the final set, posting its third consecutive frame with a hitting percentage over .300, finishing at .323 and adding four blocks. The Dukes built on an 11-9 lead with a decisive 7-2 run to break the set open. Freshman
Mirabella Iriarte opened the surge with a point, and after a Fordham kill, Duquesne rattled off five straight points. The run featured a Rams error, a block from Helm and Schrom, and a service ace from Colenbrander. Helm and junior
Chloe Wilmot teamed up on another block before Helm added a kill, followed by a point from Gabby Destler and a closing kill from Wilmot to cap the run. Fordham fought back with a 7-5 push, but Schrom finished the match with two kills to secure the victory for Duquesne.
QUOTABLE
"Really nice effort by our team today," head coach
Steve Opperman said. "Every player contributed in today's win and it's always great to go on the road and get two wins!"
INSIDE THE STAT SHEET
Duquesne featured two players with double-digit kills, led by
Emersen Schrom, who finished with 12 kills, three digs, and one block.
Carsyn Henschen added 10 kills, three digs, three blocks, and a .318 hitting percentage, moving her to just six kills shy of 1,000 for her career.
Ariel Helm contributed nine kills and five blocks, while freshman
Mirabella Iriarte totaled eight kills, three digs, and two blocks.
Chloe Wilmot orchestrated the offense with her 11th double-double of the season, recording 35 assists, 17 digs, two blocks, and two kills. Wilmot now sits just 53 assists short of surpassing 2,500 for her career.
UP NEXT
Duquesne concludes its road stretch on Tuesday, Oct. 21 when it travels to Dayton for a mid-week conference matchup beginning at 5:00 p.m.
