by The Loras College women’s volleyball team (7-9 overall, 0-1 A-R-C) fell 3-2 in a hard-fought battle against the University of Dubuque (12-4 overall, 1-0 A-R-C) Wednesday night.
The Duhawks (7-9 overall, 0-1 A-R-C) fell 25-17 in the first set against the Spartans then almost had set two but fell 25-20. The Duhawks never gave up, chipped away at the Spartan’s defense, and came out on top 25-19 in the third set. The Duhawks continued that energy and focus into the fourth set and were victorious 25-20. The fifth set was a nail-biter, but the Duhawks ultimately fell 17-15 to Dubuque.
Set 1
Dubuque started the series with a serve. They went on a nice little run until the Duhawks brought the heat and found a way to tie and jump ahead. The Spartans regained the lead after taking advantage of a few missed swings by the Duhawks. Dubuque started to run away with the game getting up 22-13, but the Duhawks strung some kills together to fight back only to fall 25-17.
Set 2
Loras began this set with serve and this started to become a battle, the Duhawks were not going down without a fight tonight. Back and forth of being tied for the first handful of points. Then Dubuque started to separate themselves a little bit, once again taking advantage of the Duhawk’s errors. That meant nothing, Kylee Garrett came in to serve and went on a 4-point run tying the score at 12. Dubuque once again strung their own points together to jump ahead 18-13. The Duhawks refused to roll over and fight their way back within two, 21-19. Then they ended up not having enough room to make a comeback, Duhawks fell 25-20.
Set 3
This was the turning point for the Loras College Duhawks. They were down at the beginning of the set then tied it up at 11, then at 14, then took the lead. This allowed the Duhawks to come into their own and begin dominating the Spartans. Cat Meyer and Alexis Woltman with kills to keep increasing the Duhawks’ lead. The Spartans tried to fight back but with too many errors and an ace from Garrett they were no match for the Duhawks. Loras won 25-19.
Set 4
The Loras College Duhawks came into this set as if they had never left the previous one. They were in command of the board the entire game, they never once had to come from behind. Sophie Younkin, Patrycja Jarzabek, Autumn Finch, and Woltman all had multiple kills in this set. The Dubuque Spartans tried to dig their way out at the end but came up short. The Duahwks won 25-20 forcing a fifth set.
Set 5
Loras takes the lead 3-0 to start the game. Dubuque began to inch their way back, but the Duhawks tried everything in their power to keep them at bay. Dubuque went on a 6-point run to get up 12-7. The Duhawks began to chip away bridging the gap and then going up 15-14, forcing the game to continue. Dubuque tied it up and then won the game with back-to-back kills. The Loras College Duhawks fell 17-15.
The Duhawks offense was led by Sophie Younkin who racked up 14 kills. Autumn Finch was right next to her with 12 kills and three blocks. Sara Hoskins tallied 50 assists and 24 digs, while Jenna Bistline finished with a game-high 35 digs.
Up Next: The Duhawks have two more conference matchups at Simpson College, on October 6th and then at Central College on October 7th.
