Aug. 29, 2008

Box Score

CHICAGO - Junior Dana VanDiggelen scored 27.5 points, including a match-high 25 kills, to rally Loyola to a 3-2 (23-25, 25-16, 18-25, 25-23, 15-13) win over DePaul tonight in the season opener for both teams at the Chicagoland Challenge at the Gentile Center. The Ramblers advance to tomorrow night's title match against Northwestern, which swept UIC in the opening match.

"I am so proud of how these ladies regrouped and pulled together to get the win tonight," said fourth-year head coach Marcie Wolbeck. "Dana was phenomenal throughout and she was able to score some big points for us but it was the collective belief that we could get the job done that pulled us through."

Game one was close throughout until DePaul used a 4-0 run to turn a 17-all tie into a 21-17 lead. A VanDiggelen kill and a DePaul error cut the deficit to two (21-19) and kills from Sarah Singer and Mindy Rees later drew LU within a point, 23-22. The teams traded points to 24-23 before DePaul's Kate Letcher wrapped up the win with a kill. VanDiggelen and DePaul's Jacie Fiedler had six kill apiece to lead their respective teams.

Loyola stormed out of the gates in game two, jumping out to a 9-5 lead after kills from Maria Schmitt and Colleen Francis. Another Schmitt kill later extended the lead to 13-8 and Loyola was able to keep DePaul at bay through the middle stages of the frame before putting it away with a three-point spurt that gave the hosts a 19-12 lead. VanDiggelen stayed hot and accounted for the last three LU points to cap a 25-16 win. The junior added seven more kills in the set, equaling DePaul's total as a team, and received support from Schmitt, who came off the bench to hammer down five kills.

Unfortunately for the home fans, the Ramblers were unable to sustain the momentum as the Blue Demons jumped out to a 9-6 lead in game three. A Mallory Curran service ace tied the set at nine but four LU hitting errors played a key role in a 5-1 DePaul run that gave the visitors a 14-10 lead. The Ramblers would get no closer than three points the rest of the way as the offense struggled to find a rhythm. After hitting .324 in its second set win, Loyola hit -.061 (7-9-33) in the third frame.

The lethargy continued into game four, as an early 7-0 DePaul run turned a 4-3 Loyola lead into a 10-4 DePaul bulge. Trailing 13-7, the Ramblers began to chip away. Kills from Singer, VanDiggelen and Francis made it a three-point game and, after trading points to 14-11, LU ripped off four straight points on Alyse Serritella's serve to grab a 15-14 lead. The teams exchanged points to 17-all before kills from Singer and Curran and a DPU hitting error gave the Ramblers some breathing room and a 20-17 lead. Although DePaul managed to pull within a single point on three occasions down the stretch, Loyola had an answer each time and Katie Johnson's kill sent the match to a fifth game with a 25-23 win.

The Ramblers again found themselves playing from behind early as a hitting error staked DePaul to a 5-2 lead. Kills from VanDiggelen and Johnson helped LU pull even at 6-all and the home team pushed out to a 10-7 lead on another Blue Demon error. Again, Loyola would bend but not break as the guests pulled with a point a 11-10 and 12-11 before consecutive Rambler points took them to match point with a 14-11 advantage. A service error and hitting error gave DPU life but the Blue Demons were in the net on match point and the Rambler comeback was complete.

VanDiggelen was outstanding and added 18 digs to her 25 kills. Alyse Serritella added 17 digs from her libero position.

The Ramblers will face Northwestern for the Chicagoland Challenge title tomorrow night at 7 p.m.