PITTSBURGH, Pa. – Rallying back from an opening set defeat, Fordham University Volleyball rattled off three straight set wins to claim a 3-1 at Duquesne Friday night.
Continuing on a tear over now her last four games, Whitley Moody set a new career high for the second time this season, drilling 25 kills while hitting .368 for the match, tying the program record for kills in a four-set match set by Lisa Hipp vs. George Mason on Sept. 28, 2013.
For the second time in the last three matches, Fordham tallied 12.0 blocks, led again by both Lorenza Rosenkilde and Sophia Kuyn, posting near identical statlines with one solo block, and five block assists along with seven kills apiece on the offensive front.
Audrey Brown would tally nine hammers and seven digs, while Zoe Talabong would lead the receptions with 15 digs along with six kills of her own, ahead of 13 digs from Ryan Naumann. All three of the Rams' setters would see the court Friday night, led by 19 assists from Mackenzie Colvin, followed by 16 from Emma Stammeyer, a career-high, and Whitney Woodrow with 13.
Following an even split of the first ten points, a 5-1 Duquesne run would see the home side take a four-point lead in the opening stages, defending that gap from there, as the Rams tried to creep back. Stretching that lead a bit from there, the Dukes built a 6-point cushion and saw out a 25-20 win.
Fordham would pull away in set two taking a 16-10 lead midway through and going on to pull away for a seven point victory, 25-18 to level the match. Continuing to maintain momentum, the Maroon and White would lead the entirety of set three, maintaining a five point gap much of the frame, and holding off a late Duquesne rally to win 25-23.
As she would in the second stanza, Moody would drill seven kills in the fourth set alone, and would have to help her team out of an early hole, tallying nine of the next 10 points to flip a 4-1 deficit into a 10-5 lead. The two teams would jockey for the lead briefly, before Fordham pulled away for another 25-18 win to take the final three sets and the win over Duquesne.
The Rams and Dukes will battle it out once again Saturday afternoon at 2:00 p.m. in Pittsburgh, Pa.
