SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – The Hawks kicked off the 2025 season in perfect fashion Friday, September 5, at the Illinois National Guard UIS Invitational. Quincy dominated from start to finish, serving up a clinic in their opener against Kentucky Wesleyan with a decisive sweep (25–7, 25–8, 25–8), before returning to the court just a few hours later to complete another clean sweep over Roosevelt (25–15, 25–13, 25–17).

Game One vs. Kentucky Wesleyan
 
The Hawks wasted no time jumping out to an early lead in set one. 2024 GLVC ace leader Elena Kasavica immediately found her rhythm from the service line, sparking a 4-0 start. Shortly after, Susanna Beretti served six straight points, forcing Kentucky Wesleyan to call an early timeout with QU in control, 10-1.
 
Back-to-back kills from Janelle Pye-Blacknard, who transitioned from libero last season to an outside hitter role, pushed the lead to 13-3, and the Hawks never looked back. Alice Pavan, competing for the first time since the 2023 GLVC Tournament, made her presence felt with two kills and a block. Beretti capped off the set with a kill through two blockers, sealing a dominant 25-7 opening win.
 
Set two followed a similar script, as QU capitalized on Panther miscues and added a pair of aces from Kasavica to storm ahead 14-3. From there, the Hawks traded two points for every one they allowed, cruising to a 25-8 win.
 
Quincy's serve pressure continued in set three. Kasavica dropped in her third ace of the match, followed by another from Beretti. Selin Turgut added two more aces during a four-point run to make it 10-3. Moments later, QU strung together six straight points behind two aces from Pye-Blacknard, extending the lead to 16-4. Pavan added three straight aces of her own to make it 20-5 before libero Lilly Marth delivered QU's 15th ace of the match to finish off a 25-8 set and a clean sweep.
 
The Hawks dominated all facets of the match, hitting an eye-popping .604 with 35 kills on 53 swings and only three errors. Pye-Blacknard led the attack with 10 kills, while Erin Matzke and Beretti each added eight. Kasavica picked up right where she left off in 2024, finishing with 28 assists.
 
Defensively, QU out-blocked KWC 5-1, with Pavan tallying three in her return after leading the Hawks in blocks last season. Turgut posted a match-high seven digs, while Marth added six to round out a convincing season-opening victory.

Game Two vs. Roosevelt

Quincy wasted no time asserting control, racing out to a 5–1 lead behind Beretti, who tallied two early kills and an ace. The Lakers battled back to trim the margin to one, but the Hawks kept their composure and created separation with a series of scoring runs. Four different three-point bursts helped Quincy build its cushion before a Roosevelt service error sealed the opening frame, 25–15.

It was another fast start for Quincy in the second set, with Turgut powering the offense with two early kills as the Hawks grabbed five of the first seven points. Quincy reached the midway mark with a 15–8 advantage and pulled away with consecutive three- and four-point runs. Pavan closed the set in style, delivering a kill followed by a service ace to clinch it 25–13.

Quincy's balance again showed through in the third. The Hawks jumped ahead 8–3, mixing strong swings with capitalization on Roosevelt errors. The Lakers made a push, closing to within 13–11, but Beretti steadied the Hawks with a five-point run from the service line. Quincy surged to match point at 24–14, and after Roosevelt strung together three points, Beretti slammed home one final kill to punctuate the sweep, 25–17.

Quincy hit .298 as a team while limiting the Lakers to just .067 and controlling the match with steady serving and strong defense. Pye-Blacknard led the attack with 10 kills on .429 hitting to go with two blocks, while Susanna Beretti matched her with 10 kills, 10 digs, two aces, and two blocks. Pavan added six kills and three aces, and Turgut chipped in six kills, two aces, and four digs. Matzke was efficient at the net with three kills on .600 hitting and two blocks. Setter Kasavica guided the offense with 25 assists and seven digs, while libero Marth anchored the defense with a team-high 12 digs.

The Hawks will return to the court tomorrow for the final matchup of the Illinois National Guard UIS Invitational, taking on Central Missouri at noon from the TRAC in Springfield, Illinois, aiming to finish the weekend undefeated at 3-0.