Sept. 15, 2007

Final Stats

CHICAGO - As they have done so often over the last 10 years, Loyola and Milwaukee put on quite a battle but the visiting Panthers got the key points down the stretch to escape with a 3-0 (34-32, 32-30, 30-28) win over the Ramblers this afternoon at Alumni Gym.

"All I can say is that it was two teams giving it their all out there today," said head coach Marcie Bomhack. "Lauren (Ditscheit) and Dana (VanDiggelen) had great offensive performances for us and Alyse (Serritella) and Melissa gave us standout performances on the defensive end. In the end though, Milwaukee was also to win the 50/50 points when it needed to and that was the difference."

Loyola raced out of the gates, reeling off five of the first six points to take the lead and force the Panthers into an early timeout. Milwaukee was able to quickly regroup to tie the game at 6-6 and the teams settled in from there, trading points to 10-all before UWM?edged out to a 13-10 lead after consecutive LU errors. A service error and a block from Craig and Dana VanDiggelen broke Milwaukee's momentum and the Ramblers hung around, finally drawing even at 17 on a Ditscheit kill. Back-to-back UWM errors followed but neither team was able to break away, as long rallies and sparkling defense on both ends were the order of the day. A Panther error gave Loyola the first crack at the opening frame but a Nicole Vilter kill erased the game point, tying the set for the 12th time at 29 apiece. After Loyola hit long, Milwaukee had its first game point vanish on an error and VanDiggelen followed that with a kill to make it 31-30 Loyola. Natalie Schmitting kept the game alive for UWM but a Sarah Singer rocket gave the Ramblers their third chance, up 32-31. Maddie Sueppel's kill extended the game and another Loyola hitting error took the Panthers back to game point, which they cashed in with their first block of the set, a tandem stuff from Sueppel and Jamie Gabrielsen. VanDiggelen was Loyola's top producer, nailing five kills and adding seven digs while Gabrielsen and Leanne Felsing had six kills each to lead Milwaukee.

Game two got off to a similar start as its predecessor, but this time the Ramblers were able to open up an 11-1 lead on the service of Ditscheit. A block from Ditscheit and Craig gave LU the ball and the sophomore setter rattled off the next 10 points, including a remarkable five aces. Sueppel eventually ended the run with a kill but the Ramblers were still in control after a Mallory Curran kill pushed the lead back to 10 (16-6). However, Loyola errors helped Milwaukee chip away at the deficit, with four straight errors helping UWM close the margin to 16-10. A VanDiggelen kill got the Ramblers to 20 points with a six-point lead (20-14) but four more LU errors, the last a result of a block by Schmitting and Kelley Olson, helped the visitors come all the way back to a 21-21 tie. Tied at 22, Loyola went on another spurt, rattling off five straight points, including two kills from Ditscheit, to take a 27-22 lead and, after trading points, held a 28-23 lead. A Schmitting kill gave Milwaukee service and Loyola could not find the elusive side-out until after the Panthers gained a game point at 29-28. Singer tied things at 29 before a VanDiggelen/Craig stuff gave the Ramblers a chance to salvage the game with a 30-29 lead. It was not meant to be, as Gabrielsen erased the game point and the Panthers scored the next two points, again ending the game with a block at the net, to take a 32-30 win and a 2-0 lead in the match. Ditscheit's five service aces in the opening run of game two were the only service aces in the match for either team prior to intermission.

Game three was a dogfight from the open, with neither team giving an inch. Another block from Craig and Ditscheit gave LU a 9-6 lead but four Gabrielsen kills highlighted UWM's 5-0 response. The teams essentially traded points to 18-all before two more LU errors pushed the Panthers to a 20-18 lead. A Keily Zins kill and a UWM error moments later tied the game at 22 and a pair of Curran kills helped the Ramblers to a 25-22 lead. Again, Milwaukee had an answer, reeling off four straight for a 26-25 lead and a Loyola error gave the Panthers a 28-26 edge. Needing only to side-out from there, that's exactly what the Panthers were able to do, closing the match on a Schmitting kill after another furious rally.

Despite being out-killed by a 59-46 margin, Loyola was able to hang in there behind a 17-8 edge in blocks and the teams combined for a remarkable 183 digs in the three-game match.

VanDiggelen led Loyola with 13 kills and added 15 digs. Curran also reached double figures with 10 kills while Ditscheit filled up the stat sheet with seven kills, 16 digs, five aces, six blocks and 34 assists from her setter spot. Serritella posted a career-high 28 digs to lead the back row effort.

Craig's 14 blocks eclipsed Jill Waddell's 12-year old record of 13 stuffs, set against Wright State on Oct. 20, 1995.

Loyola returns to the court on Tuesday night with a 7 p.m. match at home against Chicago State.