Sept. 24, 2005

Box Score

CHICAGO - Senior Hilary Stromath slammed 15 kills to lead Loyola (3-9, 2-0 Horizon) to a 3-0 (30-24, 30-26, 32-30) sweep of preseason Horizon League favorite, UW-Milwaukee (7-7, 0-2), this afternoon at Alumni Gym. For the Ramblers, it marked their second sweep of the weekend as they opened Horizon League play with a flourish.

"This win was the culmination of a great week of practice," said head coach Marcie Bomhack. "We played with tremendous energy and focus this afternoon and it is always important to win your home matches in conference play. Hopefully we can carry this momentum into Tuesday night against Notre Dame."

Much like in the Green Bay match last night, the Ramblers jumped on the opposition from the opening serve. A Melissa Craig kill gave Loyola an early 8-3 lead and the Panthers would get no closer than two points (12-10) the rest of the way. Consecutive service aces from Sarah Elmer and a UWM attack error extended the lead to 17-11 and another four-point run on the service of Courtney Ashley later made it 25-18 and took away any ideas of a Milwaukee comeback.

A Keily Zins kill early in game two put LU up 7-3, but Milwaukee battled back almost immediately, stringing together four straight points to claim a 12-10 lead. A Leanne Felsing kill extended the lead to 16-12 before the Ramblers rallied. Two aces from Ann Deelo pulled Loyola into a 17-17 deadlock and a pair of Stromath kills moments later helped LU grab a 23-19 lead. A Panther block pulled the visitors within two (27-25) before Audrey Davis restored order and Stromath put down her fourth kill of the game to give Loyola a commanding 2-0 lead heading into intermission.

Game three was a battle from the outset, with both teams finding an offensive rhythm. The teams were tied on 11 occasions to get to 18-18, when Loyola quickly saw scant two-point lead erased, to get to 20-20. A Panther block forged yet another tie at 24, and the teams traded points to 29 apiece, with Zins saving a UWM game point. A Milwaukee error gave Loyola its first match point but a Sarah Moore solo block gave the Panthers a reprieve. Another Zins kill gave the Ramblers another chance and Craig and Ashley teamed up for a block to give the Loyola its first sweep over its longtime foe since Sept. 29, 2000.

Stromath's efficient performance (15-2-25, .520) was buoyed by a double-double from Zins (13 kills, 10 digs) and eight kills and 39 assists from Elmer. Deelo added a season-high 19 digs to lead the defensive effort, which limited the Panthers to a .178 hitting percentage for the match.

Loyola returns to the court on Tuesday night (Sept. 27) when it welcomes No. 11 Notre Dame to Alumni Gym. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m.