DUBUQUE, Iowa, (Duhawks.com) – After fizzling out on Wednesday night, the Duhawks returned to the court on Friday afternoon with vengeance. Loras opened up the IIAC-NACC Crossover Challenge with a 3-0 win over the Benedictine Eagles before taking down the Lakeland Muskies 3-0 in their second match.

In their first match, sophomore Miriam McKee made her Duhawk debut. A kill from sophomore Danni Kennedy was followed up with McKee's first kill in the purple and gold, putting Loras ahead, 8-3. After a Benedictine timeout, Loras continued to build on their lead eventually winning the opening set, 25-15.

After trailing 9-8, junior Taylor Serrano crushed a ball just inside the attacking line. Serrano's kill was followed by an attacking error, giving the Duhawks a 10-9 lead. From that point on, the Duhawks closed out the set, 25-17.
Looking to close out the match in three, the Duhawks used a balanced attack to jump out to an early lead. A combination of kills from juniors Kara Kentner and Liz Jendra couple with kills from McKee and Serrano gave Loras an early 6-1 edge. Stellar back row play fueled the Duhawks the rest of the way as they ran away with set three, 25-15.

The Duhawks' second match of the night came two hours later against the Lakeland College Muskies. In the first set, the Muskies opened with a 1-0 lead, their only advantage of the match. Loras quickly responded with an 11-1 run to take command of the set, 11-2, before cruising to a 25-12 victory.

With the Duhawks leading 6-3 in the second set, Kennedy and McKee teamed up for a block to deny the Muskies attack. The defensive play pushed Loras' lead to four and forced a Lakeland timeout.
Out of the timeout, Kentner set McKee for the kill, extending the Duhawks lead to five before the Muskies closed the gap. A kill by Brittini Scoles cut the Duhawks advantage to one, 8-7.

Feeling the Muskies inching closer, Loras' attack took over. A kill by Kennedy was followed with a kill by junior Harris Hunter, putting the Duhawks ahead by two, 10-8. A combination of defensive plays kept the Muskies attack in check, while the Duhawks attack picked back up. Six kills from five different players paced the Duhawks as they extended their lead to seven, 18-11.

Moments after trading points, Lakeland used a 4-0 run to come with three before Loras took the set, 25-17.

With a commanding 2-0 lead, Loras went into the third set looking to take their second consecutive match in straight sets. An early Loras lead was cut in half, as back-to-back kills brought the Muskies within two. Fortunately for the Duhawks, that was as close as Lakeland would get as they took the set 25-19, and the match 3-0.