Feb. 21, 2009

Box Score

CHICAGO - Junior Krisjanis Berzins smashed a career-high 30 kills to lead the Loyola men's volleyball team to its second straight five-game victory, defeating Saint Francis (Pa.), 3-2 (27-30, 30-27, 30-25, 29-31, 15-12) Saturday night in Alumni Gym. The Ramblers improve to 7-3, while Saint Francis falls to 7-6.

Loyola held a 10-8 lead early in the first game, but the Red Flash eventually evened the score and kept the game close over the next several plays. With the score tied at 17, a Loyola service error gave Saint Francis the lead until a kill by Matt Baleiko knotted the game at 24. Mike Bunting followed with a kill of his own and Berzins tacked on a service ace to put the Ramblers ahead, 26-24. The Red Flash followed with a decisive 6-1 run to gain back the advantage and claim the opener, 30-27.

The second game played similar to the first, with neither team able to build a substantial lead throughout most of the contest. Saint Francis led by as much as four points late in the game at 24-20, but four Red Flash attack errors, a Michael Hutz service ace and kills by Berzins, Nick Lamoureux and George Kamberos keyed Loyola's 10-3 rally to secure the second game, 30-27.

Points were exchanged back and forth until midway through the third game, when the Ramblers went on an 8-1 run to take its biggest lead of the game at 23-18. The Red Flash came as close as three, 28-25, but two kills by Lamoureux sealed the 30-25 victory.

Loyola led for a majority of the fourth game, though Saint Francis never allowed the game to get too far out of reach. The game was tied at 22, before a kill by Michael Morice and two attack errors put the Ramblers up by three, 25-22. The Red Flash continued to chip away, however, and outscored Loyola 9-4 down the stretch to force a fifth game with the 31-29 win.

The Ramblers were off to a shaky start in the final game, falling behind 3-1 early, before a kill by Kamberos evened the score shortly after. The lead changed four more times and was tied at 12, until a Red Flash service error and two more kills from Kamberos gave Loyola the 15-12 victory and the match.

In addition to his 30 kills, Berzins also recorded a match-high .455 (30-5-55) hitting percentage and was just one dig away from securing his sixth double-double of the season. Lamoureux added 15 kills, while Kamberos tallied seven and Hutz posted a match-high 54 assists and 10 digs for his first double-double of the season. Lamoureux, Kamberos and Morice each recorded three block assists for the Ramblers.

Loyola hits the road beginning next week when it travels to conference foe Ohio State on Feb. 27.