Match Results
- Missouri State def. Loyola 3-0, (25-15, 25-15, 25-19)
- Springfield, Missouri
- Attendance: 487
- Match Stats
Press Release
Courtesy of Missouri State Athletics
Missouri State opened the home portion of the Missouri Valley Conference schedule Monday evening with a 25-15, 25-15, 25-19 sweep of visiting Loyola at Hammons Student Center.
The Bears (11-5, 3-0 MVC) hit .365 as a team against the Ramblers (1-13, 0-3), with senior Lynsey Wright leading the way with a match-high 10 kills on .348 hitting to pass Susan Ruch for 15th in school history in career kills. Aubrey Cheffey hit .538 with nine kills and Ashley Ophoven hit .375 with eight winners for a balanced offensive attack.
Cheffey and MacKenzie Irwin were each a perfect 4-for-4 on the attack in the first set, and Irwin finished off the set with back-to-back blocks as the Bears hit .361 in the period.
Ophoven fired six kills in the second set, including three in a row for an early 9-3 lead, and MSU broke the set open to a 20-9 advantage with a 6-0 run with Lily Johnson on serve. MSU jumped ahead 8-2 in the third set and kept the margin between four and seven points for the rest of the frame, hitting .385 to complete the sweep.
Missouri State limited the Ramblers to a .133 attack efficiency and owned leads of 42-31 in kills, 37-27 in digs and 3-1 in service aces. Loyola led 7-5 in blocking but also handed MSU 10 points on service errors.
The Bears aim for their 20th consecutive regular-season MVC win Friday at 7 p.m. when they host Indiana State.
Press Release
Courtesy of Loyola Athletics
In Short
Olivia Whittingham recorded a team-high nine kills, but Loyola University Chicago was unable to overcome a hot-hitting Missouri State (11-5, 3-0 MVC) squad in a 15-25, 15-25, 19-25 loss at Hammons Student Center tonight. With the defeat, the Ramblers slip to 1-13 on the season and 0-3 in Missouri Valley Conference action.
How It Happened
Elle Van Grinsven recorded a pair of kills early to help Loyola to a 4-2 lead that unfortunately would be short-lived. After Missouri State rallied to tie the score at 8, the Ramblers, who hit just .091 (8-5-33) in the set, saw the host Bears go on a 12-5 run to open up a commanding 20-13 lead en route to a 25-15 victory.
Missouri State sprinted out to a 4-1 lead in set two, but kills from Quinn Spieker and Whittingham sliced the deficit to 4-3. From there, however, the Bears went on a 7-1 run to take command of the set and open up an 11-4 lead that would grow to as many as 12 points (22-10).
The Bears scored four of the first five points of set three to take control and they would extend that lead to as many as seven points before the Ramblers mounted a late charge. Trailing 20-13, Gabi Maciagowski’s kill touched off a 6-3 Loyola run that was capped with a stop by Van Grinsven to cut the MSU lead to 23-19. But, the Bears gathered themselves and tallied the final two points for a 25-19 victory.
A Look At The Numbers
- Whittingham had her best match as a Rambler, posting nine kills and two blocks, while hitting .333 (9-3-18).
- Maciagowski added eight kills and seven digs for Loyola.
- Loyola limited All-American Lily Johnson to six kills and a .125 hitting percentage (6-4-16) but Lynsey Wright collected 10 kills to pace Missouri State.
- The Bears hit .365 (42-11-85) for the match.
Up Next
Loyola returns home to face Missouri Valley Conference newcomer Valparaiso on October 1 at 2 p.m.
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