DUBUQUE, Iowa – The Loras College women's volleyball team came up short against Central College in a five-set match on Saturday morning.

The Duhawks broke an early 3-3 tie with three consecutive kills, two from Sophie Younkin and one from Autumn Finch, to take a 6-3 lead. The Purple and Gold held at least a two-point lead for the remainder of the opening set, extending their advantage to as many as seven multiple times. Loras (10-11 overall, 1-2 A-R-C) took set one by a score of 25-21.

Central (15-6, 2-1) used a 3-0 run to break a 5-5 tie to take the lead for the rest of set two. The Dutch evened the match to one set apiece with a 25-19 win in set two.

The Purple and Gold raced out to a 5-0 lead in set three and never looked back. The Duhawks led by as many as 10 throughout the set, en route to a dominant 25-16 set three win.

Loras fought back from a 16-10 deficit in the fourth set, knotting the score up at 22-22. Both squads traded points until the final tie at 26-26, when the Dutch scored back-to-back points off a kill from Landry Pacha and a block from Emma Wagler and Gracie Pierson to take the set 28-26.

The Duhawks fell behind early in the final set (9-4) and worked their way back to trail by just one (14-13), but a kill from Kaitlyn Mumm sealed the 15-13 set victory for Central to take the match. 

As a team, Loras hit .150, which included 53 kills and 27 errors in 173 attempts. Finch and Younkin paced the Duhawk offense putting down 15 kills apiece. Sara Hoskins dished out 43 assists, while Lucie Lambe totaled 25 digs. Finch added four blocks to her stat line as well, while Iva Senio tallied three service aces.

Up Next: The Duhawks continue their homestand with a nonconference match against Beloit College on Tuesday, Oct. 15. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m. inside the Lillis Athletic and Wellness Center.