The Canisius volleyball team dropped a pair of non-league matches on the opening day of the YSU Invitational, presented by Mercy Health, Friday in Youngstown, Ohio.
In the first match of the day, the Golden Griffins lost to Duquesne 3-0 (25-15, 25-18, 25-12). In the nightcap, Canisius trailed Mercyhurst 2-0 early but fought back to win the next two sets to force a fifth and deciding set. In that final frame, Mercyhurst outlasted the Blue and Gold by a score of 15-12 to take the contest by the score of 3-2 (25-15, 25-19, 20-25, 25-27, 15-12).
DUQUESNE RECAP
Duquesne (1-0) jumped out to an early 12-5 lead in the first set of the day and never looked back en route to the 3-0 sweep. The Dukes hit .418 as a team in the match, while holding the Griffs to a .034 team hitting percentage.
Duquesne's Emerson Shrom was good for 14 kills, 10 digs and a pair of service aces in the win for the Dukes, while setter Chloe Wilmot was credited with 35 assists. For the Griffs, sophomore Alli Farmer had a team-high five kills in the loss, while freshman setter Kenslie Warmbrodt registered 12 assists for the Griffs in her collegiate debut.Â
MERCYHURST RECAP
Trailing 2-0 after the first two sets of the match, Canisius rallied to score seven of the final 10 points in the third set to earn a 25-20 victory and extend the contest.Â
In the fourth set, Canisius trailed 24-22 before tying the set at 24-24 and then knotting the fourth frame at 25-25 thanks to a kill from redshirt-junior Julia Lenik. Lenik followed her kill with a service ace to give the Griffs a 26-27 lead, and moments later, senior Hannah Kos posted one of her 11 kills on the evening to give Canisius the 27-25 set victory.
The fifth set saw Canisius fall behind early at 11-4, before a four-point swing from the Griffs got the Blue and Gold within three points at 11-8. The Griffs battled back late and trailed by two at 14-12 before Mercyhurst won the final set thanks to a Canisius service error.
Junior Emma Isroff led Canisius with 18 kills in 32 swings, for a .563 attack percentage. She also recorded an assist and three block assists. Lenik was good for nine kills and 13 digs, while senior libero Brenda Reynaga led all players with 20 digs. Warmbrodt posted 26 assists to go with three service aces, four digs and a kill.
Mercyhurst (1-1) was led by Julia Shepherd, who had a team-best 15 kills in the winning effort.
GAME NOTES
• Canisius opened the season at the YSU Invitational for the second-straight year and for the third time in the last four seasons.
• Canisius and Duquesne met for the 14th time in a series that started in 1990.
• Canisius and Mercyhurst's match-up on Friday evening was the 23rd in the series' history, dating back to 1978.
• Isroff's 18 kills in the Mercyhurst match gives her double-digit kills in four of the team's last 10 outings, dating back to last season.
• Reynaga has posted 20-or more digs in 14 of her career matches as a Griff.
• Redshirt-freshman McKenna Corcoran made her collegiate debut after missing all of 2025 with a knee injury.
UP NEXT
Canisius will close out the first weekend of the 2026 season on Saturday afternoon when the team plays host Youngstown State on the final day of the YSU Invitational, presented by Mercy Health. The match will start at 3 p.m., and will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
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