JACKSONVILLE, Ill. -- The Rose-Hulman Fightin' Engineers traveled to Illinois College to open the 2025 season in the Lady Blues Challenge. The team swept their doubleheader, defeating Eureka 3-0 and Augustana 3-1. This puts the team at 2-0 overall to start the season. 

In the first game against Eureka, Rose-Hulman got off to a strong start. After being ahead 7-5 to start the match, the team went on a 7-0 run to extend their lead to 14-5. The Fightin' Engineers held on to win the first set 25-10.

Rose-Hulman made quick work of the Red Devils, winning sets two and three 25-17 and 25-18 to complete the sweep. 

Keira Ohse led the team with 11 kills and a .500 hitting percentage. Aurora Schmidt also reached double figures in kills with 10, and led the team with four service aces. Lily Ebright and Julia Irmen both led the team defensively with 16 digs each. 

In the second match of the day, Rose-Hulman faced the Vikings in a competitive match. The Fightin' Engineers battled in the first set to tie the score at 14-14. The team then strung together a 6-0 run to stand ahead 20-14. Rose would finish strong with a service ace by Ellie Harshany to take the first set 25-20. 

After winning the second set 25-17 and dropping the third set 25-23, Rose-Hulman looked to finish strong in set number four. The team jumped to a 5-0 lead to stun the Vikings. The Fightin' Engineers never gave up the lead for the remainder of the set, defeating Augustana 25-13 to complete the doubleheader sweep. 

Greta Carlson was the standout with 12 kills in the contest. Emma Blanton also made an impact with 11 kills. Ebright showed up big time to lead the defense, tallying 27 digs in the big win. 

The Fightin' Engineers will conclude the Lady Blues Challenge, facing North Central on Saturday, August 30, at 10 AM CT.