Blue Devils Come Up Short Against St. John’s

University Park, Pa. – Four Blue Devils tallied six-or-more total blocks, but the Duke volleyball team dropped a 3-1 decision (21-25, 20-25, 25-19, 23-25) to St. John’s Saturday afternoon to close out the Penn State Invitational. 
 
A fourth-set comeback came up short and the Blue Devils fall to 4-5 overall this season.
 
Senior Rylie Kadel tied her career high of 10 total blocks while Ngozi Iloh led the Blue Devils with nine kills. Breonna Goss, Kerry Keefe and Rachel Richardson helped Duke register 17 total team blocks, the most of a Duke team since October 6, 2019 when it tallied 18.
 
Setters Grace Penn and Nikki Quinn dished 20 and 13 dimes, respectively, while libero Nikki Underwood led the team with 11 digs. 
 
How It Happened

• Both teams struggled to settle into any offensive rhythm in the opening set. St. John’s Giorgia Walther led the way with 11 kills to hit .450 percent. Duke’s blocking unit was on full display early in the match as five different Blue Devils registered at least two block assists. 
• St. John’s hit an impressive .565 percent in the second set with 16 kills and three errors while the Blue Devils saw their best offensive output of the afternoon at .379. 
• Trailing 2-0, Duke used a .346 hitting percentage in the third set to put a dent in the set score deficit. Freshman Avery Hamlin provided a spark off the bench and led the team with three kills and no errors, while Penn opened the…