Volleyball Downs Duquesne in Four in Big Two-Way Effort

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Bronx, N.Y. – The Fordham volleyball team shook off an opening set loss to coast to a four-set win over Duquesne on Saturday night, 18-25, 25-20, 25-17, 25-18, behind one of the team's best two-way performances of the season. With the win, the Rams improve to 7-15 overall and 4-7 in Atlantic 10 play, while the Dukes fall to 10-14 and 5-8, respectively.
 
Fordham enjoyed its second-most kills of the year (64) on its third-highest hit percentage (.338) with its second-most blocks (13.5). Sophomore Izzy Fichtel went off for a career-high 16 kills with Whitley Moody (15), Bella Ureña (13), and Aria De La Rosa (12 and a match-high .450 attack percentage) chipping in to combine for 56 between the four of them. Fichtel posted a match-high eight blocks, one solo, while Megan Brzozowski notched a career-best 52 assists.
 
The Rams played from behind throughout the first set, racking up nine errors in attack to hit .184 while the Dukes hit .375 with just two errors of their own. Fordham turned things around early in the second on Moody's serve, going on a 7-0 run, including four Fichtel kills to take a 9-6 lead and forcing a Duquesne timeout. The Rams led by at least three the rest of the way except for one occasion, 21-19, but a Fichtel and Brzozowski block followed by two De La Rosa kills and a Claire O'Neil kill saw out the frame.
 
With Fordham hitting .333 in the second with 17 kills and two errors, the Rams one-upped themselves in the third, posting those exact same number but on 15 fewer attacks, resulting in a .500 hit percentage. Following a timeout after a pair of Duquesne blocks to cut the deficit to one, 11-10, the Rams concluded the set on a 14-7 run with Moody kicking it off with a pair of kills then serving during a 5-0 run to create the separation, with De La Rosa and Ureña helping take the match lead with a combined three kills towards the end.
 
The two teams traded blows in the fourth, with the Dukes mainly ahead by slim margins until midway through the set. A pair of Fichtel kills sandwiched around a Moody ace gave the hosts a two-point lead that the visitors quickly erased. However, Fordham maintained the momentum with Fichtel's kill out a Rams timeout proving to be the match-winner, 17-16. Summer Slade cut the advantage to one, 18-16, but made an error on the next attack and the Rams rattled off three straight points to lead 22-17 heading into a Dukes timeout. An Ego Onu kill out of the break made it a four-point set but the Rams finished things in style through O'Neil and Moody kills and a match-ending block by De La Rosa and O'Neil.
 
Mallory Lipski finished with 20 digs, with Moody (13) and Brzozowski (12) enjoying double-doubles. During the match, Brzozowski ascended to ninth all-time in program history for career assists and is now at 1,669, with Maddy Walsh ('18) now ahead of her at 1,712.
 
Fordham will seek a new win streak when it hosts Saint Louis next Friday evening at 6 p.m. in the team's PRIDE match benefitting Destination Tomorrow.