Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania – The Duquesne University volleyball team opened the Chick-fil-A Robinson Classic on Friday and picked up a sweep on the day, defeating Niagara 3-1 and defeating Coppin State in straight sets 3-0. The Dukes improved their season record to 4-1 (.800) and won their third straight game.

Game 1 against Niagara
Duquesne took an early 10-5 lead before the Purple Eagles closed out the first set 8-3 and won the first set 25-23. The Dukes responded with a 25-23 win in the second set to tie the match. Duquesne took a 9-4 lead thanks to four consecutive aces from freshman Emersen Schrom. Niagara responded with a 10-5 run, capitalizing on five service errors from Duquesne to tie the score at 14-14. After a successful swing from Schrom, the Purple Eagles scored five more points to go ahead 19-15. The Dukes didn’t let that deter them, scoring 10 of the final 14 points to take the win. Junior Ariel Helm scored two kills, one of which secured the win for DU. Duquesne’s last five points came from kills by four different Dukes.

DOMINANT FINISH
In the third set, Duquesne was up 18-10 before Niagara went on an 11-1 run to take a 21-19 lead. The Dukes caught up and tied the score at 24-24 thanks to two kills from PhD students Elisabeth Drelling and three service aces from Schrom. The two teams traded the next six points before a successful swing from Schrom and an attack error from Niagara gave the Dukes a 29-27 win and a 2-1 lead.

In the final set, Duquesne was on top, shooting an astonishing .615 with 17 kills to take a 25-11 victory. The two teams traded the first eight points before Duquesne went on a 15-3 run to extend its lead to 19-7. Junior Carsyn Henschen and in the second year of study Avery Hobson led the attack with three kills each, while Floyd scored two points. Schrom, Helm and the second-grader Chloe Wilmot all successfully found the ground during the operation. Duquesne extended its lead with three successful swings from second graders Jordan Robertson And Avery Hobson before an attack error secured the game for the Dukes.

IN THE STATISTICS SHEET
Duquesne was led by Emersen Schromwho had a season-best performance of 17 kills, seven service aces and a .314 hitting percentage. With her seven aces, she was just one shy of breaking the record for most aces in a four-set match. Carsyn Henschen, Elisabeth DrellingAnd Avery Hobson totaled nine kills, while Hobson recorded eleven digs, 1.5 blocks and a service ace. Chloe Wilmot recorded her first assist/digs double-double of the season, recording 26 assists and 11 digs while collecting four service aces. Grace Kristofic recorded 20 assists and four digs as a junior Madison Grimm total of nine digs and three aces. As a team, the Dukes scored 17 service aces, three fewer than the program record in a four-set match.

Game 2 against Coppin State
The Dukes got off to a slow start, trailing the Eagles 5-1 early in the set. Duquesne responded with a 7-2 run to take an 8-7 lead. Drelling led the charge with two kills, while Schrom scored a successful swing and an ace. The graduate student continued the pace as her serve ace sparked an 8-4 run and gave the Dukes a 16-11 lead. The two teams traded eight points before Duquesne capitalized on four Eagles attack errors to pull out a 25-17 win in the opening period. As a team, the Dukes scored seven blocks and three aces in the set.

BLOCK PARTY
Duquesne picked up right where it left off in the first set, scoring eight blocks to lead to a 25-21 win in the second set. The Dukes took an early 7-2 lead thanks to three kills from three different players and two blocks from Floyd and Drelling. After a Coppin State timeout, the Eagles scored six of the next eight points to cut the deficit to 9-8. Later in the set, the Dukes went on a 9-3 streak with Henschen and Schrom hitting successful shots while DU scored three blocks during the run. Coppin State was able to cut the deficit with a 7-2 run before Duquesne scored five of the final eight points to win the set. Drelling scored two kills while Schrom and Hobson scored points.

IN THE STATISTICS SHEET
After the 26-24 win, the Dukes were led by Schrom, who had 12 kills, two service aces and a block. Drelling was second on the team with nine kills and a .368 hitting percentage, five digs and an ace. Floyd recorded six successful hits on a .417 hitting percentage and led the team with 4.5 blocks. Wilmot controlled the offense with 18 assists and six digs, while Kristofic finished with 12 assists and seven digs. Grimm and Hobson each collected seven digs, while Helm had five kills and two blocks.

Next
Duquesne returns to action on Saturday, Sept. 7, when it hosts Robert Morris to conclude the Chick-fil-A Robinson Classic. Opening tipoff is scheduled for 3 p.m.

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