Oct. 12, 2008

Final Stats

Valparaiso, Ind. - Katie Johnson had 14 kills but it was not enough as Loyola dropped a 3-1 match to Valparaiso this afternoon at the Athletics-Recreation Center. The Ramblers (14-6) wrap up the first half of their Horizon League schedule with a 4-4 mark despite having played seven of those eight matches on the road. Valpo improves to 12-6 (4-4).

Loyola turned around a five-point deficit in the opening set to draw first blood. Down 14-9, LU reeled off seven straight points on the service of Lauren Ditscheit - three on service aces - to grab a 16-14 lead. The Ramblers were unable to extend the lead but a Crusader error and a Colleen Francis kill broke a 22-all deadlock and gave the visitors two set points. An Angie Porche kill and a Kim Bukowski ace erased both chances and the set went into extra points, where a VU error and a Johnson kill gave Loyola a 28-26 victory.

The second set was all Valpo, as the hosts jumped out to leads of 6-2 and 15-6 before cruising to a 25-11 win. The all-important third set was tied eight different times to 12-all before VU ripped off three straight points to take the lead. A Sarah Singer service ace drew the Ramblers within a point (18-17) and a Mallory Curran block later kept Loyola in it (22-21) but the Crusaders were too tough down the stretch, using two Val Bollenbacher kills to claim a 25-21 win.

Valpo jumped out early again in the fourth set, taking a 7-3 lead before Loyola began to chip away. Two kills each from Curran and Johnson helped the Ramblers pull even at 9-9 and back-to-back Johnson aces later kept it tied (13-13). However, Valpo scored nine of the last 11 points to close out the match.

Johnson led the Ramblers with 14 put-aways while Singer added a double-double of 12 kills and 11 digs. Porche, the Horizon League leader in kills, put down a match-high 20 to lead Valpo.

Loyola starts the home-heavy second half of its conference schedule next Friday when it hosts Youngstown State at 7 p.m.