Box Score DUBUQUE – The Roosevelt University women's volleyball team opened its regular season slate on Saturday, August 20 as the team traveled to Dubuque, Iowa to take on the Clarke Pride inside the Kehl Center. The season's introductory contest was a hard-fought affair that went the full five sets.
The Lakers got off to a quick start in the first set with back-to-back kills by Brooke Williams scoring the first two points of the season. When the Pride rallied to gain a 13-9 edge, the Lakers showed resiliency early in the season, fighting back to tie the set at 17-17. With the score now 22-22. Roosevelt was able to put the set away with three consecutive kills, including two from Nicole Darin to win the first set.
The Lakers took that momentum into the second set, earning a 4-0 lead early. However, Clarke delivered the counter punch, evening the set at 10 apiece. Roosevelt would not be deterred by this, as kills from Williams and Logan Cofield led to a Clarke timeout and a 17-12 Lakers' lead. Roosevelt held onto the lead for the remainder of the set to win 25-23 and take a two set to none advantage.
The third set started slow for the Lakers as the Pride pounced to a 5-0 lead. However, with the score 5-10, the Lakers scored eight straight behind a pair of kills from Emily DeBlecourt to take a 13-10 lead. The Lakers held the upper hand until the score was 22-18, but Clarke finished strong, scoring the final seven points to win the third set 25-22.
The fourth set was a back-and-forth affair with neither team able to jump out to more than a two-point lead for more than a point. However, with the Pride up 21-20, Clarke capitalized to take a 24-20 lead. The Lakers did not quit, scoring on three straight points to cut the deficit to one, but it was not enough. After Clarke won the fourth set 25-23, the teams headed to the deciding fifth set tied at two.
The final set started in Clarkes favor, but the Lakers scored three-straight to tie things up at 3-3 after a kill from Viktoria Marysheva. However, Clarke put their foot on the gas, winning six of the next seven points to take a 9-4 advantage. The Lakers were not able to close the gap to less than three the rest of the way, falling in the last set 9-15.
MATCH DETAILS
Score: Roosevelt 25 25 22 23 9
Clarke 22 23 25 25 15
Records: Roosevelt 0-1 | Clark 1-0
Location: Kehl Center | Dubuque, Iowa
KEY STATS
NEXT UP
The Lakers head south to Indianapolis on Friday, August 26 for the Knight Invite on the campus of Marian University. During the two day invite, the Lakers are scheduled to take on Shawnee State, Marian, and Indiana East. Roosevelt begins round-robin play against Shawnee State at 1 p.m. on that Friday.
