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Lourdes University opened the home portion of its 2017 schedule on Wednesday evening, earning a three-set sweep of Indiana University South Bend 25-17, 25-14, 25-19 at the Russell J. Ebeid Recreation Center.
 
The win, the Gray Wolves' 28^th straight at home, and 12^th in a row since the building opened, extended Lourdes win streak to four overall this year.
 
"We did what we had to do on our home court," head coach Greg Reitz said after the match.  "The atmosphere in here makes it a great home court advantage for us, and we played a sound match tonight.  This was the first time this year we have competed at full strength.  Having a full lineup allowed us to have good team chemistry all the way through."
 
Trailing 7-5 in the opening set, Lourdes scored seven of the next nine points to build a lead it would not relinquish the rest of the stanza.  The 22^nd-ranked Gray Wolves tallied five service aces in the set and took advantage of three service errors from the Titans.
 
In the second, another 7-2 run allowed the Gray Wolves to open up a 14-7 advantage and the hosts slowly extended the lead from there.  Lourdes hit .361 in the frame with Chelsea Lawrence (Palmdale, Calif./Highland H.S.) putting down five kills on six swings.  Defensively the Gray Wolves limited Indiana-South Bend to just six kills.
 
The third set was close through the midway point, with eight ties and four lead changes.  Tied at 14, Lourdes went on a 9-2 run to seize control on the way to completing the sweep.  The Gray Wolves had 17 kills in the final stanza.
 
For the match Lourdes hit .264, led by 11 kills and a .455 hitting percentage from Lawrence and a double-double by Kristin Murrell (Toledo, Ohio/Central Catholic H.S.), who had a match high 13 kills to go along with 10 digs.  Sarah Wisser (Schoolcraft, Mich./Schoolcraft H.S.) handed out 19 assists while Jami Markus (Oregon, Ohio/Central Catholic H.S.) added 15 more, helping Lourdes to 44 total kills for the match.
 
Defensively, Angelica Dippold (Louisville, Ky./Mercy Academy) recorded a match-high 18 digs while Tylar Roberson (Elkhart, Ind./Central H.S.) had 15 more.  Lourdes finished with a 60-51 advantage in digs for the match.
 
"We were sound both offensively and defensively tonight," Reitz added.  "They are a quality team and we were able to hold them to just 26 kills and a .070 hitting percentage.  I think that shows how well we played."
 
Sarah Allison led Indiana-South Bend (3-3) with eight kills and 15 assists while Janelle Rehlander had a team-high 13 digs.
 
Lourdes (4-1) will head to Marion, Ind. this weekend for the Indiana Wesleyan Invitational.  The Gray Wolves face Saint Francis (Ill.) at noon and Indiana-Kokomo at 4 p.m. on Friday in the opening day of action at Luckey Arena.