MATCH 16
Duquesne (12-3, 3-1) at Dayton (12-5, 4-0)
Tuesday, October 6 | 5:00 p.m.
Frericks Center| Dayton, Ohio
Live Stats | Live Video (ESPN+)

2026 Roster | 2026 Schedule | 2026 Statistics | DUQ Game Notes
 
Bump. Set. Spike.
- The Duquesne volleyball team wraps up its three-match road swing, traveling to Dayton on Tuesday, Oct. 6, for a mid-week matchup inside the Frericks Center, beginning at 5:00 p.m.

- The Dukes split a pair of matches over the weekend, dropping a 3-1 decision at Saint Louis on Friday night before producing a 3-2 comeback on Saturday afternoon over the Billikens.

- On Friday, Duquesne took an early 1-0 lead in the match after producing 11 kills, three blocks and a pair of aces in the opening set. The Dukes jumped out to a 9-4 advantage behind three straight kills from freshmen Simone Searles, Londyn Stone and Maddie Bush before Searles capped the run with another successful attack. Saint Louis trimmed the deficit to 12-10 later in the set, but a pair of kills from Searles pushed Duquesne's lead back to 15-12 heading into the media timeout.

- The Dukes carried that momentum out of the break, rattling off five straight points to extend their advantage to 20-12. A pair of service aces from senior Delaney McIntosh and two kills from classmate Jordan Robertson paced the run. The two teams traded the next eight points before Stone closed out the set with a kill, giving the Dukes a 25-16 victory in the opening frame.

- A pair of Dukes finished in double figures offensively, led by Simone Searles and Emersen Schrom. Searles paced Duquesne with 19 kills and nine digs while hitting .351, adding two blocks on the night. Schrom recorded 12 kills, six digs and an ace, while Londyn Stone contributed six kills and eight digs. Chloe Wilmot directed the Duquesne offense with 37 assists while adding nine digs, three kills and two blocks. Delaney McIntosh led the Dukes with 19 digs.

- On Saturday, Duquesne battled their way back to force a fifth set. The Dukes trailed 7-4 early before rattling off three straight points to even the score at 7-7. Freshman Londyn Stone registered back-to-back kills before junior Emersen Schrom capped the run with a successful swing. Later in the stanza, the Billikens took a 12-11 lead before Duquesne responded with five consecutive points to secure the match.

- A Saint Louis miscue started the run, followed by a rejection from seniors Chloe Wilmot and Jordan Robertson. Another Billiken error extended the run before Schrom delivered the final blow, sealing the 15-12 fifth-set victory for the Dukes.

- Duquesne featured a trio of players with double-figure kills, led by Emersen Schrom. The junior recorded her sixth double-double of the season with 18 kills and 15 digs while tying her season high with six aces. Londyn Stone posted her third double-double of the season, finishing with 17 kills and 16 digs while adding a block. Simone Searles rounded out the trio with 16 kills to go along with eight digs and two total blocks. The trio accounted for 51 of Duquesne's 62 kills on the evening while combining for 39 digs.

Scouting The Flyers – Dayton enters Tuesday's match riding a five-match winning streak while holding a 12-5 overall record and a perfect 4-0 mark in A-10 play. The Flyers most recently collected a pair of sweeps at Fordham last weekend, earning straight-set victories on both Friday and Saturday. Dayton is led offensively by Kamryn Hunt, who is averaging 2.86 kills per set while hitting .232 on the season. She has recorded double-digit kills in 12 matches and ranks third on the team with 15 service aces. Hunt also leads the Flyers with 2.48 digs per set, totaling 164 on the season. Natalie Harrington and Rylee Sloss have directed the Dayton offense, with Harrington averaging 5.11 assists per set while leading the team with 20 service aces. Sloss has added 4.88 assists per set and ranks second on the team with 19 aces. Charlotte Vinson anchors the Flyers at the net, totaling 44.0 blocks on the season, including a team-high five solo blocks. Tuesday's match marks the 64th meeting between the two programs, with Dayton holding a 59-4 advantage in the all-time series.

Rookie Reign Continues - For the third consecutive week, freshman right side Simone Searles has been named the Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week, the league office announced Monday. Searles helped the Dukes split a pair of road matches at Saint Louis while averaging 4.56 points, 4.11 kills, 1.89 digs and 0.89 blocks per set. She hit .269 for the weekend, totaling 37 kills, 17 digs and four blocks across the two matches. The Georgia native opened the weekend with her second consecutive 20-plus-kill performance, recording 21 kills and nine digs while hitting .350 in Friday's match. She also added a pair of blocks. Searles followed with 16 kills, eight digs and two blocks in a 3-2 comeback victory over the Billikens on Saturday. The honor marks Searles' fourth A10 Rookie of the Week selection this season, making her just the fourth player in program history to earn the award at least four times in a career. Searles has made an immediate impact during her first season on the Bluff, ranking second in the A-10 with a .338 hitting percentage. She also ranks third in the conference in both kills per set (3.82) and points per set (4.39). Her 246.0 points rank fourth in the league, while her 214 kills are fifth.

Veteran Minds Collide – Tuesday's matchup features two of the Atlantic 10's most accomplished head coaches, with Duquesne's Steve Opperman and Dayton's Tim Horsmon combining for more than 1,100 career victories. In his 18th season at Dayton, Horsmon has amassed 617 career wins, including 441 with the Flyers. Opperman, in his 29th season on the Bluff, has collected 524 career victories, including 405 at Duquesne. The two coaches are the only A10 head coaches to surpass 500 career victories and are among 21 active NCAA Division I head coaches with at least 400 wins at their current institution. They are also two of just 16 active Division I head coaches to record 500 or more career victories while earning at least 400 wins at their current program. Among active Division I head coaches, Horsmon ranks 10th nationally with 617 career victories, while Opperman ranks 23rd with 524.

A Milestone Swing – Friday, Sept. 25 marked a milestone night for junior outside hitter Emersen Schrom, who entered the contest just 24 kills shy of 1,000 for her career and delivered when it mattered most. With her fourth kill of the fifth set, Schrom eclipsed the 1,000-kill mark, joining an elite group of Duquesne volleyball players to reach the career milestone. Schrom finished the night with a match-high 25 kills while hitting an impressive .420, adding two service aces and three digs. The Pittsburgh native continues to rank among the Atlantic 10's best, leading the conference and ranking second nationally with 41 service aces while sitting third in NCAA Division I with 0.73 aces per set. Schrom also leads the A10 and ranks 23rd nationally in points per set while ranking second in the conference in total points (270.0) and kills per set (3.98) and third in total kills (223). She enters the week with 1,050 career kills and 124 career service aces, the latter ranking sixth in program history.

FOLLOW THE DUKES
For the latest news and information on Duquesne volleyball, follow the Dukes on Twitter (X) and Instagram.