MATCHES 1, 2, & 3
Canisius (0-0) vs. Duquesne (0-0)
Friday, August 28 | 11:00 a.m.
Zidian Family Arena at Beeghly Center| Youngstown, Ohio
Live Stats | Live Video (YouTube)

Duquesne (0-0) at Youngstown State (0-0)
Friday, August 28 | 7:00 a.m.
Zidian Family Arena at Beeghly Center| Youngstown, Ohio
Live Stats | Live Video (ESPN+)

Mercyhurst (0-0) vs. Duquesne (0-0)
Saturday, August 29 | 12:00 p.m.
Zidian Family Arena at Beeghly Center| Youngstown, Ohio
Live Stats | Live Video (YouTube)

2026 Roster | 2026 Schedule | 2025 Final Statistics | DUQ Game Notes
 
Bump. Set. Spike.
- The Duquesne volleyball team opens its 2026 campaign this weekend at the YSU Invitational presented by Mercy Health. The Dukes begin play on Friday, Aug. 28, with an 11:00 a.m. matchup against Canisius before facing host Youngstown State at 7:00 p.m. Duquesne concludes the tournament on Saturday, Aug. 29, against Mercyhurst at noon.

- The Dukes are led by head coach Steve Opperman, who enters his 29th season at the helm. The all-time winningest coach in program history, Opperman has guided Duquesne to 393 overall victories, including 173 in Atlantic 10 play. He enters the 2026 campaign just seven wins shy of reaching the 400-win milestone at Duquesne.

- Duquesne returns nine players from a season ago, highlighted by three seniors and a pair of national leaders. Seniors Chloe Wilmot, Jordan Robertson and Kylie Griffin return for their final season on the Bluff.

- The Dukes added six newcomers to the roster for the 2026 season, including five freshmen and one transfer. Redshirt senior Delaney McIntosh joins Duquesne after spending four seasons at Colorado State, while freshmen Maddie Bush, Keely McMahon-Regan, Charlotte Arrington, Londyn Stone and Simone Searles will begin their collegiate careers in the red and blue this fall.

- Excluding the 2020 COVID-19 season, Duquesne will open its season on the road for the 13th consecutive year. In season openers under Opperman, the Dukes own a 19-9 (.678) record and have won six of their last nine season openers.

- Overall, Duquesne is 28-12 (.700) in season openers since 1986.

- Duquesne returns to Pittsburgh for the Chick-fil-A Robinson Classic, set for Sept. 4-5. The Dukes open tournament play against Eastern Michigan on Friday, Sept. 4, at 11:00 a.m. before facing Elon at 6:00 p.m. Duquesne concludes the tournament against Robert Morris at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 5, at the UPMC Events Center.

Scouting The Golden Griffins – A member of the Metro Conference, Canisius enters the weekend after being picked fourth in the league's preseason poll. The Golden Griffins are coming off a 12-18 overall record last season, including a 9-9 mark in conference play, before falling in the Metro Tournament semifinals. Canisius is led by Tom Hanna, who enters his fifth season at the helm. Friday's matchup marks the 14th meeting between the Dukes and Golden Griffins, with Duquesne holding an 11-2 advantage in the all-time series. The Dukes have won seven straight meetings between the two teams, including a 3-0 sweep last season at the YSU Invitational. Emersen Schrom paced the Dukes with 15 kills, nine digs, three blocks and two aces, while Karli Jordan posted a double-double with 10 kills and 10 digs while hitting .435. Chloe Wilmot directed the Duquesne offense with 39 assists while adding five digs and three kills.

Scouting The Penguins – It'll be the 32nd meeting on Friday night when the Dukes and Penguins take the floor, with Duquesne holding a 21-10 advantage in the all-time series. The Dukes have won seven of the last 10 meetings, including a 3-0 sweep last season. Three Dukes finished with double-digit kills in the victory, led by Emersen Schrom with 13 kills, eight digs and three service aces. Karli Jordan added 11 kills, two digs and a block, while Jordan Robertson matched her with 11 kills, three blocks and a .318 hitting percentage. A member of the Horizon League, Youngstown State is coming off one of its best seasons in more than a decade, finishing with a 17-14 overall record and an 11-7 mark in league play before advancing to the conference tournament semifinals. The Penguins' 17 wins were their most since 2014, while their 11 Horizon League victories marked a program record. YSU also tied its program record with 10 home victories. The Penguins are led by Riley Jarrett, who enters her third season at the helm. Jarrett has helped turn the program around in just two seasons. After winning nine matches in her first season, she guided the Penguins to a historic 2025 campaign.

Scouting The Lakers - In their third season as an NCAA Division I program, Mercyhurst and Duquesne will meet for just the third time. The Lakers previously competed at the Division II level in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) before making the transition to Division I as a member of the Northeast Conference (NEC). Mercyhurst is coming off a 12-18 season in 2025, including a 10-6 mark in NEC play, while earning its first-ever berth in the NEC Tournament. The Lakers are led by Ryan Patton, who enters his 22nd season at the helm in Erie with more than 275 career victories.

Among the Nation's Best – Duquesne returns a pair of starters who ranked among the nation's leaders a season ago. Senior setter Chloe Wilmot and junior outside hitter Emersen Schrom look to lead the Dukes once again. Wilmot enters her final season on the Bluff with 2,924 career assists, the sixth-most in program history. She led the Atlantic 10 with 10.64 assists per set last season, ranking 15th nationally, while her 1,277 total assists ranked eighth in the country. The Virginia native recorded 14 assist-dig double-doubles and added 41 service aces, the seventh-most in the A-10. Schrom returns to the Bluff following a historic 2025 campaign in which she earned A-10 All-Conference First Team and All-Academic Team honors. She set a single-season program record with 532 kills, which ranked 14th in NCAA Division I. Her conference-best 4.43 kills per set ranked 25th nationally, while her 604.5 total points ranked 10th in Division I. The Pittsburgh native recorded 15 kills-digs double-doubles while pacing the team in kills 27 times.

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