Feb. 17, 2023 – Not many people expected this one to be as close as it was as the Loras College men's volleyball team somehow managed to pull enough of a rally together to fend off an upset attempt from Edgewood College on Friday night.

The Duhawks (7-1) are not far outside of the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) rankings, but they didn't play like a Top 15 team for the majority of their match against the Eagles (3-9), who were looking to end a three-game skid on Friday.

Things couldn't have started off much better for the Duhawks as they cruised to a 25-10 victory in set one. Edgewood managed just two kills in that opening period and racked up 11 total errors while never having much of a chance after junior Tyler Kratochvil led the Duhawks to an 8-0 run early in the set while on the serve.

After the opening set victory, the Duhawks appeared to get too comfortable as head coach Dylan Ross began cycling in some new lineups. Six different Duhawks saw game action for just the third, second, or even the first time all season.

The Eagles stuck with their same core of eight or so players for the entirety of the match and gained momentum with a second-set victory. They led for nearly the entire period and scored six of the final seven points in the set, including the final two on kills from Jake Chapman, to even things up at 1-1.

Loras got back into a rhythm to start the third set, and four straight points to make it 8-2 helped create some breathing room. Sophomore Corey Mayotte tallied a pair of kills to get that run started.

The Duhawks limped to the end of that set as Edgewood service errors accounted for five of Loras' final six points, although the other point did come on a service ace from Kratochvil.

Edgewood again found some momentum and played with a noticeable bounce compared to that of the Duhawks in the fourth set. After an early string of four straight points gave the Eagles the lead, another 4-0 run extended their lead to 22-16 after three different players tallied kills. That proved to be the difference as the Eagles won 25-20 to force a fifth set.

Loras sent a more traditional starting lineup into the game for the fifth set as senior Patrick Mahoney entered the match for the first time and senior Joe Horn appeared for the first time since set one. Despite that, it was Edgewood that jumped out to a 7-3 lead and put a scare into the Duhawks and the home crowd, which had been quiet for most of the evening.

After trailing 7-3, Loras claimed seven of the next nine points to take a 10-9 lead and bring some energy back into the Lillis Athletic and Wellness Center. That swing in momentum was all the Duhawks needed as they worked their way to match point. Freshman Hayden Dal Degan came on for the serve and executed to perfection as his low serve clipped the net and just barely fell over the tape for a game-winning ace.

Senior Dorian Fiorenza led all players and tallied a season-high 15 kills in what turned out to be the first five-setter for the Duhawks in 2023. He had the most attempts, and therefore the most errors, on the team to finish with an attacking percentage of .323 while also leading the way with eight digs.

Mayotte joined Fiorenza in double figures with 10 kills while junior Michael Dziewior added seven and freshman Sean Wenzel added a career-high six in just his third career match.

The Duhawks were originally scheduled to play at St. Ambrose University on Saturday, Feb. 18, but that game has been cancelled. Loras' next game will be Tuesday, Feb. 21, at Benedictine University at 7 P.M., which was postponed last week due to weather.