Crusaders Sweep Opening Day Double-Header

IRVING, Texas - The University of Dallas women's volleyball team won both of their opening day matches on Friday, defeating Regis College in straight sets and McMurry University in five sets.

The Crusaders were firmly in control for much of the proceedings against Regis.  Though the Pride took an early lead in the first and second set, both times Dallas found their stride in the latter stages of the set while the Pride simultaneously lost their grip on the game.  Unforced errors, particularly on serves, handed the Crusaders a good chunk of points. 

Dallas' offense was firing on all cylinders in the third set, racking up 11 kills on just a single attack error.  On top of that, they tallied five service aces to cruise to a 25-11 win in the set and complete the sweep.

Cassie Dyoub led all players with 11 points, hitting .474 with 10 kills and just one error.  Emma Parsons and Larissa Ramirez tallied 12 and 9 assists, respectively, and led the team with three service aces, along with Abby Medico.  Devin Henry led the team with nine digs, and Isabel McKamey led with four block assists.  Parsons, Henry, and McKamey all made their Crusader debuts in this match.

Things were much tighter against McMurry, who defeated Regis in four sets in the 3:00 p.m. game.  The two sides were neck and neck in set one, with the Warhawks finally pulling away with a 7-2 run to take the set. Dallas responded by taking an 11-3 lead and cruising to a set two win, only for McMurry to come back with a similarly comfortable win in set three.

Dallas led for nearly all of set four, but gave McMurry a window of hope with a string of errors late in the set.  An attack error and a kill by Cassie Dyoub gave the Crusaders the 25-21 win to force a fifth set.  With the raucous home crowd behind them, the Crusaders cruised to a 15-6 win in set five to seal the deal.

Dyoub once again led the way with 18.5 points, recording 16 kills with 13 digs.  McKamey was right behind with 15 kills on just four errors for a .407 hitting percentage, as well as leading the team with six block assists.  Layo Akinyede notched 10 kills with three erros, hitting .304 against the Warhawks.  Henry once again led with 24 digs, and Ramirez led with 24 assists.  Parsons was right behind her with 19 assists.

Up Next

The Crusaders are right back at it on Saturday, hosting Belhaven and Pacific for a pair of games.  Game one against Belhaven is set to start at 11:00 a.m.