Pittsburgh, Pa. – The Duquesne volleyball team opened play at the Chick-fil-A Robinson Classic on Friday, capturing a pair of four-set victories. The Dukes secured a 3-1 win over Loyola Maryland early this morning before downing FDU, 3-1 during the night cap. With the two victories, Duquesne improves to 5-0 and off to their best start since the 2008 season when they won six straight.

MATCH 1 vs. LOYOLA MARYLAND
After dropping the opening set 27-25, Duquesne bounced back in the second stanza, recording 19 kills and a .412 hitting percentage to even the match at 1-1. The two squads traded the first 18 points before the Greyhounds pulled ahead 13-9, forcing a Dukes timeout. Following the break, Loyola Maryland extended its lead to 17-12, but Duquesne responded with a 9-1 run to seize a 21-18 advantage. Senior Ariel Helm sparked the rally with a kill, followed by a successful swing from sophomore Emersen Schrom. After an attacking error by the Greyhounds, Schrom notched consecutive kills to force a Loyola timeout. A point by the visitors briefly slowed the momentum, but Helm and Schrom mounted back-to-back successful swings, with Schrom adding a service ace and freshman Karli Jordan finishing the run with a kill to the floor. The Greyhounds trimmed the deficit to 24-22, but a final point from Jordan sealed the set for the Dukes, 25-22.

TAKING ADVANTAGE
Duquesne capitalized on a struggling offensive performance by Loyola, rolling to a 25-16 victory to take a 2-1 lead in the match. The Dukes jumped out to an early 12-5 advantage, highlighted by two kills each from Helm and Schrom, along with two blocks during the run. The Greyhounds fought back, capturing six of the next nine points to trim the deficit to 15-11, but Duquesne responded with a 7-2 surge to stretch its lead to 22-13. The run began with an attacking error by Loyola, followed by kills from Helm and Schrom. The visitors recorded a point before senior Carson Henschen found the floor with a successful swing. After another Greyhounds kill, junior Chloe Wilmot, Helm, and Jordan each recorded kills to close out the streak. The Dukes capitalized on three more errors by Loyola to secure the set-three victory.

MATCH SECURED
Behind 19 kills and a .359 hitting percentage, the Dukes closed out the match after securing a 25-17 victory in set four. Henschen and Schrom gave the Dukes a 15-10 lead later in the set before Duquesne netted five of the next eight points to secure a 20-13 advantage. Helm connected on a pair of kills during the stint while Henschen and Jordan each found the floor successfully. After a Loyola MD point, junior Jordan Robertson registered a pair of successful swings while Schrom found the floor successfully twice, including the match point to give the Dukes a 3-1 victory.

INSIDE THE STAT SHEET
For the first time since November 2002, Duquesne featured four players with double-digit kills in a four-set match. 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.

MATCH 2 vs. FDU
Duquesne opened the match with a hot start, racing out to an 8-2 lead before extending the margin to 13-3. Four different Dukes recorded kills during the stretch, while Henschen, Helm, Schrom, and Robertson each contributed blocks. FDU managed to cut the deficit to 14-7, but Schrom and Jordan ignited a 7-3 run that pushed the Dukes' lead to 21-10. Jordan fueled the surge with two kills and a block, while Schrom added a timely finish at the net. The Knights battled back to claim six of the next eight points, but a service error followed by a Helm kill sealed a 25-16 opening-set win for Duquesne.

2-0
The second frame proved more competitive, with neither team pulling ahead by more than three points until the Dukes pieced together a decisive 7-1 run to take control at 22-14. Junior Jordan Robertson sparked the surge with a kill, followed by another from senior Hanna Wilson. After FDU briefly answered, Henschen landed a kill before teaming up with Helm for a block. A Knights error, a rejection by Helm and Schrom, and another successful swing from Henschen capped the burst. FDU trimmed the margin to 24-19, but a final kill from Helm closed the set, giving Duquesne a commanding 2-0 match lead.

BOUNCE BACK DOMINANCE
FDU claimed set three with its best showing of the night, tallying 18 kills on a .319 hitting percentage to earn a 25-22 victory. Duquesne quickly responded in dominant fashion, hitting .360 in the fourth set to close out the match. After the teams split the first 10 points, the Dukes rattled off 11 straight to seize a commanding 16-5 lead. Helm and Henschen each delivered two kills during the run, while Robertson added a kill and a service ace. Duquesne continued to roll, extending the margin to 21-12 before junior Chloe Wilmot dropped in a service ace, Jordan converted a kill, and a pair of FDU errors sealed a 25-13 win and a 3-1 match victory for the Dukes.

INSIDE THE STAT SHEET
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.

QUOTABLE
"I thought we did a nice job of continuing where we left off last weekend," head coach Steve Opperman said. "Our team is doing a nice job of playing for each other. Our attack was very balanced and at times is challenging for other teams. I think defensively and from the service line are the biggest improvements from last season."

UP NEXT
Duquesne concludes the classic on Saturday, Sept. 6, with a 3 p.m. matchup against RMU at the UPMC Events Center.