The Blue Devils made it out of Winston-Salem, N.C., with a 3-0 record and championship hardware after grabbing the title in the Black and Gold Challenge at Reynolds Gym.

But two sets into Saturday morning’s match against Liberty (5-6), things weren’t looking quite as promising. Pitted against the Flames, a mediocre squad out of the Big South Conference, Duke (11-2, 1-0 in the ACC) struggled against the opposition’s middle blocking tandem and dropped two very close sets, 27-25 and 25-22.

“We weren’t passing the ball as efficiently as we need to in order to do the things we want to do offensively,” head coach Jolene Nagel said. “But, some of the credit needs to go to their defense, as they were terrific in getting their hands on a lot of balls.”

However, behind the stellar work of setter Kellie Catanach, who recorded 57 assists in the match, and sophomore Sophia Dunworth’s 16 kills, the Blue Devils were able to get their offensive attack going and reeled off three straight games to clinch the victory. Junior Becci Burling and senior outside hitter Rachael Moss contribtued double digit kills to the comeback effort.

Beyond the efforts of the upperclassmen, a number of freshmen contributed to the win. Megan Hendrickson and Nailah Waterfield both received significant playing time and rewarded their coach for her faith in their abilities.

“Nailah and Megan were able to get some good opportunities in some important times where it was a little more stressful,” Nagel said. “They really steadied us in these tough times during the match.”

Hendrickson had a career-high 12 kills, including a few crucial ones in the momentum-building third set. Waterfield had a team-high 15 digs, and her play was especially critical in getting a 29-27 victory in the fourth set. In the exciting, back-and-forth frame, Waterfield came up with five big digs and even added six errorless service receptions.

To advance into the game against Liberty, Duke first had to confront host team Wake Forest (0-10, 0-1 in ACC). The struggling Demon Deacons didn’t make it too tough on the Blue Devils. Duke secured the win in three consecutive sets.

“It feels really good to get our first ACC win,” Nagel said. “All three sets were very competitive, and we had to fight for every point. It was a great match for us to get under our belt and also to gain experience as we begin our ACC season.”

With a 2-0 record and a lot of momentum following a come-from-behind win, Duke squared off against Appalachian State (3-10) in the final. The Blue Devils never gave the Mountaineers much hope for pulling off the upset as they jumped out to a quick 2-0 advantage. Appalachian State fought back and won a pesky 26-24 victory in the third set. But Duke quickly squelched any hope there may have been for a dramatic comeback bid, winning the fourth set in convincing fashion.

For their individual performances on the weekend, Catanach was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player, and Burling joined her teammate on the all-tournament squad.

Reflecting on the season up to this point, Nagel noted the fact that Duke found itself at tournaments on the road each of the last three weekends. Nagel hopes this experience away from home will pay off soon as the Blue Devils prepare to travel to Maryland and Boston College for matches next week.