Sept. 13, 2013
Box Score
Notre Dame, Ind. - Host Notre Dame finished the first and third sets strong to earn a sweep over Loyola, 3-0 (25-19, 25-12, 25-19) tonight in the Ramblers' first match of the Shamrock Invitational in Notre Dame, Ind. The loss snaps Loyola's (5-3) three-match winning streak while the Fighting Irish get back to .500 (3-3) with the win.
Two blocks from Olivia Akin and Maureen Carls gave Loyola an early 5-3 lead but Notre Dame responded immediately, using three consecutive blocks to key a six-point run that gave the home team a 9-5 edge. The lead grew to six (12-6) before Loyola started to chip away. A Notre Dame error and two kills from Carr made it a 15-12 game and a Libby Bresser kill later helped the Ramblers get within a pair (20-18) in the late stages. After trading points to 21-19, Notre Dame finished strong, using a Meg Vonderhaar kill and three LU errors to grab the opening set, 25-19. Carr led the way for Loyola, notching five of the team's 12 kills in the set.
Loyola used two Carr kills to rattle off the first three points of the second set but the Fighting Irish scored the next five to take the lead. Loyola was able to find points early and was still within two (9-7) after a Bresser kill. However, it was all Notre Dame from that point on as the home team outscored the Ramblers 16-5 the rest of the way to take a 2-0 lead into intermission. The home team hit .440 (13-2-25) in the set while limiting Loyola to a .034 (9-8-29) efficiency.
The third set started in similar fashion, with a Laura Purcell solo block givine Loyola an early 3-0 lead. Notre Dame scored four of the next five to draw even and the teams battled back-and-forth throughout. A Loyola error gave ND a 15-12 lead and the Ramblers trailed 18-14 before a service error and a kill and block from Carr made it an 18-17 game. The teams exchanged points to 19-18 but Notre Dame proved to be too tough down the stretch, notching five of the last six points to close out the match.
Carr gave LU some consistent production, finishing with a career-high 11 kills to lead the way. Morgan Reardon added eight kills while Akin led the defensive effort with five blocks.
Loyola wraps up tournament play with a pair of matches tomorrow. The Ramblers take on Auburn at 9:30 a.m. before returning to battle Oakland at 3:30 p.m.
