MATCHES 7, 8, & 9
Southern Indiana (1-6) vs. Duquesne (6-0)
Friday, September 12 | 1:30 a.m.
Oxford, Ohio| Millett Hall
Live Stats | Live Video

Middle Tennessee (4-2) vs. Duquesne (6-0)
Friday, September 12 |4:00 p.m.
Oxford, Ohio| Millett Hall
Live Stats | Live Video

Duquesne (6-0) at Miami (OH) (3-4)
Saturday, September 13 | 3:00 p.m.
Oxford, Ohio| Millett Hall
Live Stats | Live Video (ESPN+)

2025 Roster | 2025 Schedule | 2025 Statistics 
 
Bump. Set. Spike.
- The Duquesne volleyball team continues its non-conference slate when it travels to Oxford, Ohio to compete in the Best Western Invitational on Friday, Sept. 12 and Saturday, Sept. 13. The Dukes begin competition against Southern Indiana at 1:30 p.m. before returning to the court that evening to take on Middle Tennessee at 4:30 p.m. Duquesne concludes play at the invitational on Saturday at 3:00 p.m. when it battles the host Miami (Ohio).

- The Dukes are coming off another dominant weekend at the Chick-fil-A Robinson Classic, where they went a perfect 3-0 on the weekend. Duquesne opened play with a 3-1 victory over Loyola Maryland before securing another 3-1 win over FDU. The Dukes ended the evening with a thrilling 3-2 five-set winner at RMU on Saturday.

- With it's 6-0 start, Duquesne has matched its best start to a season since the 2008 campaign.

- Against the Greyhounds, Duquesne featured four players with double-digit kills in a four-set match for the first time since November 2002. Sophomore Emersen Schrom led the way, recording her second straight double-double with 14 kills and 12 digs, along with two blocks and two service aces. Freshman Karli Jordan added 13 kills, two digs, and two blocks, while senior Ariel Helm tied her career high with 13 kills on a .524 hitting percentage, finishing with three blocks and two assists. Classmate Carsyn Henschen contributed a season-high 13 kills and three rejections.

- The Dukes also saw four players reach double figures in digs for the first time since November 2022, led by senior Madison Grimm, who posted a season-high 15 digs and added three assists. Classmate Hanna Wilson contributed a season-best 11 digs and two aces, while junior Chloe Wilmot notched her second double-double of the season with 48 assists and 10 digs, also tying her career high with four service aces. Junior Jordan Robertson added five kills and led the team with five total blocks, including two solos.

- Two Dukes finished in double figures offensively, led by Emersen Schrom, who recorded her third straight double-double with 14 kills and 13 digs. She also added five total blocks and an ace. Carsyn Henschen followed with 12 kills on an impressive .435 hitting percentage while contributing three blocks. Jordan chipped in nine kills, while Helm posted eight kills to go along with a team-high seven blocks. Junior setter Chloe Wilmot paced the offense with her fifth consecutive match of 30+ assists, finishing with 34 helpers, six digs, and three service aces. With the performance, Wilmot moved into 10th place all-time in program history with 1,837 career assists, surpassing Nikki Taylor's mark of 1,783 set in 1996–97.

- It was a historic day in the finale of the Chick-fil-A Roberson Classic, as head coach Steve Opperman earned his 500th career victory with Duquesne's 3-2 triumph over RMU in a five-set thriller.

- Joining Schrom in double figure kills was senior Carsyn Henschen, who posted her third straight match with 10 or more kills. She finished with 12 successful swings, along with four blocks and three digs. Karli Jordan and Ariel Helm each posted eight kills while Helm collected five blocks on the evening.

- Jordan Robertson paced the team with seven total blocks while tallying five digs and five kills. Chloe Wilmot controlled the offensive with her third double-double finishing 52 assists and 13 digs. Wilmot moved into 9th place all-time on Duquesne all-time assist list, surpassing Sarah Svorinic (1,877 / 2008-10). Senior Madison Grimm posted her fourth match with double figure digs with 13 while senior Hanna Wilson tallied nine digs, and three assists.

- Duquesne returns back to Pittsburgh when it wraps up non-conference action at the Duquesne/Robert Morris Invitational on Friday, Sept. 19 and Saturday, Sept. 20. The Dukes open play against Buffalo on Friday at 6:00 p.m. before battling Saint Francis on Saturday at 2:00 p.m.

Scouting the Screaming Eagles – A member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC), Southern Indiana enters the invitational with a 1-6 record after competing in the Michigan Invitational last weekend. The Screaming Eagles opened play with a 3-0 loss to Florida Atlantic before falling 3-1 to Marshall later that evening. They closed the tournament on Sunday with a 3-1 setback against Michigan. This will mark just the second meeting between the Dukes and Southern Indiana, and the first since the 2022 season, when the Dukes earned a 3-1 victory. USI is led by Ashby Willis, who averages 3.15 kills and 2.52 digs per set. Aysa Thomas directs the offense with 7.09 assists per set, while Audrey Small anchors the defense with a team-high 3.55 digs per frame.

Scouting the Blue Raiders – On Friday evening, Duquesne will face Middle Tennessee for the first time in program history. A member of Conference USA (CUSA), the Blue Raiders enter the weekend with a 4-2 overall record after hosting the Blue Raider Bash. They opened the tournament with a straight-set sweep of Marist before falling 3-0 to Mississippi State later that day. Middle Tennessee closed the weekend strong, sweeping UT Martin on Sunday. The Blue Raiders are led by Raegan Durbin, who averages 2.76 kills per set, while Caroline Macander guides the offense with 7.95 assists per set and also leads the team with 3.24 digs. Isil Yilmaz contributes 3.19 digs per set, and Michaela Dlouhá anchors the front line with 1.14 blocks per frame.

Scouting the RedHawks – A member of the Mid-American Conference (MAC), Miami (OH) enters the weekend with a 3-4 record after competing in the Xavier Tournament. The RedHawks dropped a 3-2 decision to the host on Friday night before falling to Eastern Kentucky (3-1) and IU Indy (3-2) on Saturday. This will be the third meeting between Duquesne and Miami (OH), with the RedHawks holding a 2-0 advantage in the series, including a win in their most recent matchup in 2022. Miami's offense is led by Chelsea Williams and Molly Creech, who are averaging 2.63 and 2.50 kills per set, respectively. On the defensive side, Lindsay Kahren anchors the back row with 3.18 digs per set, while Gentry Warrick controls the middle with 1.71 blocks per frame.

Climbing the Ranks – A handful of Dukes continue to produce night in and night out as they continue to climb the ranks of the record book. Junior setter Chloe Wilmot currently sits ninth in program history with 1,889 career assists while leading the A-10 and sits 10^th in the country with 11.0 assists per set. She has posted 30 or more helpers in all six matches this season, including a season-high 52 at RMU. Senior middle blocker Ariel Helm currently ranks fourth in the league with 27 total blocks wile sitting sixth in program history with 347 total rejections. She has posted three-plus blocks in five of six matches while collecting a season-high eight at YSU. Senior libero Madison Grimm surpassed 1,000 career digs earlier this season and currently sits in the top 15 of the program with 1,067 career digs. Grimm is just over 200 digs shy of cracking the top 10 in Duquesne history. She has totaled double figure digs in four of six matches, including a season-best 15 against Loyola Maryland.

The Legacy Continues - Head coach Steve Opperman, now in his 35th season overall, secured his 500th career victory at RMU last Saturday, becoming one of just 26 active head coaches nationwide to reach the milestone. He is also only the second active coach in the Atlantic 10 to surpass 500 wins, joining Dayton's Tim Horsmon. The longest-tenured coach in Duquesne volleyball history, Opperman is in his 28th season with the Dukes, where he has amassed 381 victories, the most in program history. An Ohio native, he began his career at Wright State, collecting 119 wins in seven seasons with the Raiders. During his time on the Bluff, Opperman has coached Duquesne's first two AVCA All-Americans, produced 18 All-Atlantic 10 First and Second Team honorees, developed 27 A-10 All-Rookie Team selections, and mentored two A-10 Rookies of the Year.

Another One - For the second straight weekend, sophomore Emersen Schrom shined, earning Atlantic 10 Player of the Week honors for the second time in a row. Her dominant play also secured MVP recognition at the Chick-fil-A Robinson Classic and a place on the All-Tournament Team. She powered the Dukes' offense with 4.88 points and 4.38 kills per set while also averaging 2.46 digs. Over three matches, the Pittsburgh native totaled 57 kills, 32 digs, and seven blocks. Schrom opened the tournament with her second double-double of the season, tallying 14 kills, 12 digs, two aces, and two blocks in a 3-1 win over Loyola Maryland. She added another double-double against FDU with 14 kills, 13 digs, and five blocks in another 3-1 victory. Schrom then capped the weekend with a career-best 29 kills on 60 swings (.467) in a five-set win at RMU, finishing just one shy of the program's all-time record for a five-set match while also contributing seven digs and an assist. Schrom is just the second player in Duquesne history to earn the honor in back-to-back weeks, and the first since 2014, joining program standout Arielle Love (2011–14).

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