Contact: Nathan Cameron, Assistant Director of Athletic Communications, 563-588-7243

WAVERLY, Iowa (Mar. 25, 2021) - The No. 23 Loras College women's volleyball team (6-3, 5-3 A-R-C) closed out their 2020 (2021) campaign in Waverly, Iowa as they took on Wartburg College (6-2, 6-1 A-R-C) in their final American Rivers Conference (A-R-C) matchup of the season. The Duhawks were edged 13-25, 12-25, 14-25 after receiving their fourth straight national ranking from the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA). 

Set number one saw the Knights take an early lead scoring four straight on the Duhawks but the scoring run was spoiled by the Duhawks' Lyndsi Wilgenbusch who put down a kill assisted by Jackie Alberto. Wartburg went on to score three more before it was Alberto's turn to record a kill, assisted by freshman setter Sara Hoskins. The Duhawks added three straight points in the middle portion of the set, kick started by Jade Casper, followed by Wilgenbusch and a Wartburg attacking error rounded out the run. The Duhawks' offense was on display plays later when Wilgenbusch put down a kill to put Moira Mixan at the service line for the Duhawks where she posted an ace on Wartburg's Kennedy Meister. Alberto added another kill to her stats on the night to record the third point of the run. The Knights were able to outlast the Duhawks to take set one 25-13. 

The Duhawks took an immediate lead in the second set on an attacking error from Wartburg's Claire Marsh, but the Knights responded four of their own. Alberto ended the Knights' attack with a kill from a perfect set from Hoskins. Wartburg gained an advantage in the middle of the set but the Duhawks ended the set by outscoring Wartburg 7-2, with five of those points coming on set point seeing Liz Fleckenstein, Hoskins and Wilgenbusch each posting a kill in the barrage. Wartburg held off the Duhawks to take the set victory at 25-12. 

After scoring two points at the start of set number three, the Knights put a point on the board for Loras with a service error from the hand of Marsh. Wilgenbusch brought the Duhawks back within one with a kill that was assisted by Krystal Tranel. Down by two points, the Duhawks brought the score back to a tie at 5-5 on two back-to-back errors from the Knights. The Duhawks traded scoring through the middle of the set, keeping within one point of the opposition before Wartburg pulled away on a five point run. Olivia Smith put an end to the Knights' attack with a kill assisted by Mixan but the Knights again held off the Duhawks with a 25-14 win in the third set to take the match. 

Alberto led the Duhawks offensively with seven kills while Wilgenbusch put down six of her own and Casper had three. Mixan put down one service ace for Loras while joining Tranel defensively with a combined 22 digs on the night.

Under first year head coach Kristy Duncan, the Duhawks achieved milestones that had previously never been reached, including the program's first-ever AVCA national ranking and their highest-ever national ranking when they were named No. 15 in NCAA Division III on Mar. 17 after defeating then-ranked No. 11 Cornell College.