DUBUQUE, Iowa (Duhawks.com) - The Loras men's volleyball team dropped Friday night's MCVL tilt to 11th-ranked Mount St. Joseph in straight sets, falling to 6-11 on the year. Freshman
Austin Kuchenbecker finished with seven kills and hit .333 on the night to lead the offensive charge.
LORAS POST MATCH NOTES - The Duhawks took on the 11th-ranked Mount St. Joseph Lions in the first of three matches this weekend.
- Set one was back-and-forth from the get-go as Loras trailed 8-7 following a block from sophomores Dylan Ross and Dawid Kasprzak.
- Both teams continued to jockey for position as a roll-shot kill from freshman Alfredo Lopez brought the Duhawks within one once again at 14-13.
- At this point, the Lions began to find their offensive rhythm, using a three-point run to extend their lead to 17-13, prompting a Loras timeout.
- Following the timeout, the Duhawks made a run of their own bringing the score to 17-15 after a service ace from freshman Ryan Galvan.
- Loras continued to come on strong late in the set as a string of errors from the Lions brought the Duhawks within one at 23-22, forcing a timeout from MSJ.
- The Lions responded definitively after the break, closing out set number one and taking the win, 25-23.
- Ross and Lopez both registered three kills in the first frame to pace the Duhawk attack.
- In frame number two, the Lions took hold early on, jumping out to a 7-3 advantage.
- Loras clawed its way back to within two points as the set progressed, trailing 12-10 after a kill from freshman Austin Kuchenbecker.
- At this point, MSJ used a critical 5-1 run to extend its' lead to 17-11, forcing a timeout from head coach Jeremy Thornburg.
- With this cushion established, the Lions cruised to a set two victory over the Duhawks by a score of 25-15.
- Sophomore libero Blair Anderson recorded eight digs in the first two frames to lead Loras defensively.
- In similar fashion to set one, the third set started off with both teams trading points as a block and kill combination from Kasprzak knotted the score at 6-all.
- A block from Ross kept the score tied at 11-all as both teams continued to fight for the advantage.
- The Duhawks took their first lead of the frame at 14-12 after back-to-back Lion errors, which forced a MSJ timeout.
- After the break in action, the Lions regained their form and used a run of their own to take a 19-16 lead.
- Following a timeout from Loras, the Duhawks closed down the deficit to one point at 19-18 after a Ross kill.
- However, MSJ used a 6-3 run to close out the frame 25-21 and take the match in straight sets.
- Kuchenbecker tied a career-high with seven kills on 18 attempts
- Lopez set career-highs in digs (7) and blocks (3)
FRIEDMAN GROUP PLAYER OF THE GAME
Dawid Kasprzak | The sophomore came off the bench and was just about perfect on Friday night, finishing with four kills on eight attempts and added three assisted blocks.
UP NEXTLoras returns to the hardwood on Saturday afternoon, hosting Wittenberg in MCVL action at 2 p.m.
