Oct. 25, 2011

Box Score

Peoria, Ill. - Laura Purcell recorded a team-high 10 kills but it was not enough as Bradley knocked off Loyola, 3-0 (25-21, 25-20, 25-20), tonight in the Ramblers' final non-conference match of the season in Peoria, Ill.

"I thought we came out flat tonight," said head coach Chris Muscat. "We did not match their energy and put ourselves in some holes that we could not get out of. I thought Natalie (Pounovich) did a nice job of making herself available offensively and she was able to make some plays at the net."

Loyola got off to a slow start, falling behind 6-1 and 12-5 in the early going. Two Bradley errors helped the Ramblers get within five, 15-10, and a Purcell kill and two more Braves errors later made it a 17-14 game. A Courtney Keefe kill gave the home side a 22-17 advantage before the Ramblers made one final spurt. Purcell's fifth kill of the set gave Loyola service and Vicki Wrobel served up two more points to draw LU within two, 22-20. However, an Annie Cave kill stemmed the tide and Bradley would take the opening set on an Allie Falter kill.

Wrobel picked up where she left off at the service line, opening the second set by serving up three straight points. Bradley began to find its rhythm and moved out to a 13-9 lead on a Falter kill. The teams traded the next seven points until a Bradley error helped the Ramblers get within two, 16-14. However, Bradley responded with the next three tallies to open up a five-point lead and Loyola would get no closer than three points the rest of the way as the Braves took a 2-0 lead in the match with a 25-20 win.

After alternating points to 4-all in the third set, Bradley used two Rambler errors to take a 7-4 lead. Two more errors later helped the Braves open a 15-8 advantage but a Styler kill and a block from Styler and Libby Bresser helped Loyola stay within striking distance. Unfortunately, the Ramblers could not string enough points together and a Cave kill wrapped up a 25-20 win that sealed the match.

Purcell led Loyola with 10 kills while Styler and Natalie Pounovich pitched in with seven apiece.

"It will be good for us to get a couple of days back in the gym to continue to work on some things," continued Muscat. "We need to keep working on the skill sets and systems that are going to make us better in the future while focusing on the Green Bay match on Friday."

The Ramblers take a couple days off before traveling to Green Bay for a Friday night (Oct. 28) match with the Phoenix.