Box Score
La Salle vs. Duquesne Box
 
PITTSBURGH – The Explorers battled hard early against conference heavyweight Duquesne, but ultimately came up short against the powerful Dukes, falling in straight sets (22-25, 10-25, 10-25). Sophomore outside hitter Kelly Perillo led the Explorers with 10 kills (.114 hitting%), while adding three digs. Junior setter Rachel Melich paced the Blue & Gold with 19 assists, while adding three kills on six attacks.
 
The Duquesne defense stifled the Explorers, after a close hard fought opening set, holding the Explorers to just 20 combined points in the final two frames. As a team, the Dukes hit a strong .310 (39 kills – 12 errors – 87 attacks), while holding the Blue & Gold to a .041 (24 kills – 20 errors – 98 attacks) clip.
 
The opening set was characterized by a series of runs after the teams traded the first ten points of the contest. The Dukes strung together a 6-1 run, with sophomore middle hitter Taylor Lockett scoring two kills and a block assist in the scoring streak. The Blue & Gold responded with a subsequent 6-1 run of their own, knotting the score at 12-12 midway through the opening set. Another big 6-0 run by Duquesne stretched the lead to 18-12, but the Explorers did not back down. The Blue & Gold rattled of nine of the next fourteen points to cut the deficit to two at 21-23. That was as close as the Explorers would get, as they fell in the opening set 22-25.
 
The Duquesne (16-9; 10-2 A-10) defense began to assert itself in the middle frame. They held the Explorers (1-29; 0-12 A-10) to just eight kills on 21 attacks in the middle frame, as the Blue & Gold could only muster ten points in the set. The third set followed a similar theme, as the Explorers were held to seven kills on 30 attacks, again only scoring ten points.
 
Junior middle hitter Jennifer Whelan played a strong defensive game at the net front, notching two solo blocks and  two block assists in the match. She also added two kills on just seven attacks, hitting a solid .286 clip.
 
Sophomore outside hitter Laura Kuhlmeier added four kills and 11 digs. Erin Noga led the Explorers with 13 digs.
 
La Salle returns home for their final two matches of the regular season next weekend. They will take on the Fordham Rams on Friday, November 15^th at 7:00pm, before concluding the season against Duquesne on Sunday, November 17^th at 1:00pm. The Explorers will host Senior Day festivities before Sunday's m