DUBUQUE, Iowa. (duhawks.com) - The Loras men's volleyball team secured a 3-1 overall record at the Loras Invitational after earning two victories versus Calumet-St. Joseph and Illinois Tech on their second day of competition. In the Duhawks first victory against IIT, freshman Alfredo Lopez led the way with five kills and a .714 attack percentage while posing a school record seven service aces. In Loras' second match of the day versus CCSJ, Sophomore Dylan Ross was a force once again tallying a career-high 14 kills along with five blocks and four service aces.

FRIEDMAN GROUP PLAYERS OF THE GAME
Alfredo Lopez | Lopez made his presence felt from the service line in Loras' match with Illinois Tech where he registered seven aces to go along with his five kills and zero errors on seven attack attempts.
Dylan Ross | Ross filled the stat sheet once again registering 14 kills, five block, four aces, and two digs in four sets against Calumet-St. Joseph.

POST GAME NOTES - IIT

• In their second meeting in just a couple weeks time, Loras matched up with Illinois Tech in their first game of day two at the Loras Invitational.
• Similar to the first match, the Duhawks controlled the pace of play throughout, winning in straight sets against the Scarlet Hawks for a second time.
• In set one, both teams went rather back and forth with Loras only holding a 13-9 when Alfredo Lopez went back to serve.
• From there, Lopez was able to rip off a serving run of eight straight points which included six service aces.
• Lopez recorded seven aces in the first set, setting a program set and match record in the process.
• The Duhawks rode the wave of momentum into set two and got out to a comfortable 11-7 lead.
• However, Loras' altered lineup ran into some problems late in the frame when a Kyle Zacok service error made the score 18-16.
• To close out the frame, the Duhawks went on a 7-3 run and a Ryan Galvan kill secured set two for Loras.
• The Duhawks started slow in set three and saw themselves trailing 11-10 after a kill from Alex Babusci.
• Loras was able to hit its stride and pull away in the match thanks to a six-point run with Danny Krasich at the service line.
• Three consecutive IIT errors sealed the Scarlet Hawks fate as they fell 25-18 in set three and dropped the match, 3-0.
• Kyle Zacok and his six kills in the final two frames were key contributions towards Loras' three-set victory.
• Freshman Eric Zirzow and junior Paul Kraus both recorded their first career kills in today's match.
• As was mentioned before, freshman Alfredo Lopez did it all for the Duhawks, totaling five kills, two blocks, and one assist to go along with his seven service aces.
• Hitting .382 for the match, Loras powerful attack was on full display as they finished with 38 kills in just three sets.
• With this being the Duhawks fourth win of 2016, they have already eclipsed their 2015 win total just eight matches into the season.

POST GAME NOTES - CCSJ

• In a rematch with one of the sides which the Duhawks defeated in 2015, Loras matched up with Calumet-St. Joseph College in their fourth and final match of the Loras Invite.
• Getting out to a fast start, the Duhawks jumped on top of the Crimson Wave taking a 7-2 lead in set one.
• However, a litany of Loras errors gave CCSJ life as they took a 16-13 lead after a Dylan Ross error.
• This advantage proved to be too great in set one as two consecutive Trevor Wagner kills gave the Wave a first frame victory.
• Set two featured even play at the jump from both sides as they traded points up until 9-all.
• It was at this point that the Duhawks rolled off five straight tallies with Alfredo Lopez at the serving stripe.
• Leading 14-9, Loras maintained this cushion to the end of the set as a Dylan Ross kill tied the match at one.
• Seeming to have found their groove, the Duhawks coasted to a set three victory thanks to 15 kills and a .429 attacking percentage.
• Featuring a balanced attack, Loras hitters Dylan Ross, Jimmy Combs, Ryan Galvan and Greg Kinney all recorded multiple kills in the frame.
• In what would be the deciding set, set four featured more Duhawk dominance as they raced out to a 9-4 lead.
• The Crimson Wave showed some life, however, as a Greg Kinney attack error put Loras' cushion at just 15-11.
• Regaining their form, the Duhawks went on another of their patented runs, this time a string of nine straight points to make the score 24-11.
• Although the Wave would make a run of their own, Ryan Galvan finished it off for the Duhawks with a kill securing the 3-1 victory.
• In beating Briar Cliff yesterday and CCSJ/IIT today, Loras finished its home tournament with a 3-1 record and improved to 5-4 in 2016.
• Sophomore Shayne Marquez totaled a season-high 28 assists in the match helping the Duhawks to their 51 kills and .246 attack percentage.
• Dylan Ross finished the match with a career-high 14 kills and added five blocks four service aces to pace the attack.
• In his first career start, freshman Middle Hitter Austin Kuchenbecker chipped in six kills and three blocks.

SOUNDBITES | Dylan Ross, Shayne Marquez and Alfredo Lopez


SOUNDBITES | Jeremy Thornburg


UP NEXT
Loras will now take to the road for a four-game stretch against MCVL competition. The Duhawks conference opener will be next Friday, Feb. 5 against Benedictine at 7 p.m. in Lisle, Ill.