DUBUQUE, Iowa – The Augustana men's volleyball team fell on the road Wednesday to the Loras Duhawks 3-1 by set scores of 25-11, 23-25, 25-13, 25-16.

Augie fought valiantly early in the first set, battling to 5-5, but fell behind by double figures after enduring a 13-4 Duhawks run. Loras prevented any comeback threat from Augustana, taking set one by a score of 25-11. The Vikings trailed 4-2 to open the second set but snatched a six-point lead following a 7-1 scoring burst. The Duhawks enjoyed a 12-5 run, cutting the lead to one at 24-23 before a Zach Moreano kill secured the game win for Augustana to even the series. 

Similarly to the first set, Augie and Loras pushed each other early to an 8-7 score in favor of the Duhawks. Loras took control the rest of the way, winning the game 25-13. The Vikings jumped to a 2-1 lead in the fourth frame but quickly found themselves on the back foot following an 11-4 surge from the Duhawks. With Loras leading 19-10, Augie trimmed the lead to six behind a 5-2 run, but fell short on their comeback attempt as the Duhawks won the fourth set 25-16.

With eight kills, Sean Carlson led the Augie offense, while Aidan Bolen came in second with five. Josh Van Essen and Matthew Degnan had five digs to lead the Vikings, while Degnan racked up 21 assists as well.

With the loss, Augustana moves to 8-5 overall and 0-2 in the conference. The Vikings will have the weekend off before they face Concordia-Chicago and Baldwin Wallace in a tri-match on Wednesday, March 8. The first game against the Cougars will kick off from River Forest, Ill., at 2:30 p.m., followed by their second game against the Yellow Jackets at 5:00 p.m.