RIVER FOREST, Ill. – After handling the visiting Sabres of conference foe Marian University 3-0 in the first match of the day, the Stars fought off the Eagles of Robert Morris University 3-2 in their second match to bring their win streak to 10 and improve their record to 18-4 overall and 8-0 in Northern Athletics Conference play.

Versus Marian (6-19, 3-5 NAC), the Stars would find themselves down 6-7 in the first set before Jacy Lawrence (St. Louis, Mo./Villa Duchesne)put one down off an assist from Jess Guerrieri (Plainfield, Ill./North), and followed it up with a service ace to put the Stars up 8-7, a lead they would never give up. 

The Stars would then put a 17-2 rally on the Sabres (recording 10 kills, three blocks, and two service aces) to close the set 25-9. Their 16 total kills and lone attack error on 24 attempts in the set also led to an outstanding .625 attack percentage, a momentum they would carry into set two.

In the second, the Stars stayed hot and grabbed the 15-2 lead after scoring in clusters of eight and six.  The 25-12 end result was a product of another impressive attack (.349) and 18 kills in the set. Set three would stay a little tighter, but the Stars finished off the Sabres 3-0 with a 25-16 victory.

Guerrieri assisted 32 kills in the match, which more than doubled that of the entire Marian squad.  Lawrence, Becca Fritz (Mount Carroll, Ill./West Carroll), and Claire Dezelski (Northville, Mich./Ladywood) were popular receivers of her assists, recording 17, 11, and 10 kills, respectively.  Four Stars would also record double-digit digs in the match, led by Becky Honerlaw’s (Waukesha, Wis./West) 15.  Liz Yakey (Sun Prairie, Wis.) also contributed with 13 digs, while Guerrieri and Dezelski recorded 10 apiece, giving Dezelski a double-double in the match.

In Dominican’s second match of the day, things started slow in the first set, as they would never see the lead against non-conference opponent Robert Morris University (11-10) and fall 20-25.  They would bounce back in the second, though, with 14 kills from six different Stars.  Leading the way was Lawrence with four kills, while Dezelski and Kellie Van Voorhis (Union Mills, Ind./La Porte) each chipped in three.

With the match tied 1-1, things stayed tight, as the third set would see its 14^th tie at 21-21 after a Julie Schulenburg (Springfield, Ill.) kill.  The kill started a three-point rally for the Stars, taking the set 23-21.  After an attack error by Lawrence, the Eagles would get a chance to tie the set once more, but their service error gave Dominican the point, and Lawrence redeemed herself with a thunderous kill to end the set 25-22.

The 2-1 match lead for the Stars wasn’t enough to keep the Eagles down, however, as the Melissa Joyce – Kimberly Smith tandem kept the Eagles alive by leading them to a 25-23 set four victory, forcing a fifth and deciding set.

In the fifth, Robert Morris started things off with a 4-1 lead before Dominican would answer back with a five-point swing of their own, including back-to-back service aces by Dezelski.  The score would then reach 7-7, and the Stars would use an Eagle attack error to start a four-point swing that included a service ace from Honerlaw and two Honerlaw – Lawrence connections to take the score 11-7 in favor of Dominican. 

But again, the visitors would not back down, as they answered back with three straight kills to bring the score 11-10, still in favor of the Stars. That would be as close as they would get, however, as Guerrieri fed Lawrence and Dezelski for back-to-back kills, and the Eagles would suffer two errors to finish the set 15-11 in favor of the Stars.

Robert Morris’ Melissa Joyce and Kimberly Smith had valiant efforts in the loss, as Joyce recorded a triple-double in the match with 24 assists, 13 kills, and 11 digs, while Smith put down 18 kills for a .533 attack percentage, and had 3.5 blocks.  Joyce was also one kill away from a triple-double in their first match of the day, as she dished out 31 assists, had 11 digs, and nine kills in the 3-1 victory over Marian.

But in the end it was the Stars who were undefeated on the day, and leading the way in their five-set victory was Guerrieri, as she handed out a match-high 34 assists and had 10 digs, five kills, and a service ace.  Lawrence put down 18 kills of her own, while Evelyn Gamboa (Chicago, Ill./Queen of Peace) provided some offensive spark with nine.  Defensively, Yakey and Dezelski picked up 20 and 16 digs, respectively, to give the Stars’ offense more chances, and the team tallied nine service aces in the match.

Head coach Ryan Baumgartner is pleased with his team’s performance, “Everyone has really shown a lot of determination and drive this weekend.  I think the girls are starting to realize what it is going to take to keep creating tradition here at Dominican.”

The Stars’ next contest is Wed., Oct. 12, when they take on Concordia Wisconsin in a match that is raising awareness for Breast Cancer Research.  Donations will be accepted to benefit the Central DuPage Hospital Cancer Center.  Match start time is 7 p.m.