Final Stats | Box Score

LORETTO - The No. 1 Loyola University Chicago men's volleyball team remains perfect after defeating Saint Francis in a five-set thriller on Saturday night. Cody Caldwell fired a match-high 22 kills to help the Ramblers push past the Red Flash and improve their overall record to 5-0.

The opening set began with the two teams trading points until Caldwell scored three straight, firing two kills and a service ace, to give the Ramblers a 7-4 lead. The teams continued to battle back and forth until a 3-0 run gave Saint Francis a 14-12 lead, forcing a Rambler timeout. Loyola responded with a 6-2 run behind kills from Caldwell and Jeff Jendryk to take an 18-16 lead, but Saint Francis was able to tie the set at 20-20. The Red Flash were able to pull ahead and win the set 25-22 to take a 1-0 lead, marking the first time this season that Loyola has trailed during a match.

The Ramblers raced out to an 8-3 lead to open the second set behind kills from Caldwell and Trevor Novotny, along with blocks from Jendryk and Peter Hutz. Loyola gave up one kill before scoring four unanswered points to increase the lead to 13-4, forcing a Saint Francis timeout. The Ramblers continued their tear out of the timeout, going on a 5-2 run to take an 18-6 lead, before ultimately pulling away to win the set 25-13. The Ramblers recorded a .632 hitting percentage while holding Saint Francis to .000 during the set.

The third set began with the two teams battling back-and-forth until a 3-0 run put Saint Francis up 8-5, forcing a Loyola timeout. Despite kills from Novotny and Caldwell, the Red Flash tore out of the timeout with a 6-3 run to increase the lead to 14-8. Loyola continued to chip away at the lead until a string of Saint Francis errors and kills from Caldwell pulled the Ramblers to within one point, making the score 22-21 and forcing a Red Flash timeout. Thomas Jaeschke, who entered the game for the first time midway through the set, and Caldwell were able to fire two kills apiece, but Saint Francis put together back-to-back points to win the set 27-25 and take a 2-1 lead.

The Ramblers jumped out to a 7-3 lead top begin the fourth set, led by Ben Plaisted. The freshman fired a kill and a service ace, while also recording a block, to lead the charge and give the Ramblers the early lead. After a string of errors by both teams, the Ramblers were able to put together a 4-0 run behind kills from Caldwell, Jaeschke and Plaisted, followed by a block by Plaisted and Jendryk, to increase the lead to 14-7. Loyola maintained the steady lead until a 6-1 run, led by Caldwell, Jaeschke, Olson and Jendryk, gave the Ramblers a 23-13 lead. Loyola went on to win the set 25-14 behind a .550 hitting percentage and tie the game at 2-2.

The two teams traded points back-and-forth to open the fifth set until a 4-0 Loyola run, led by Jaeschke and Olson, gave the Ramblers a 9-5 lead. Plaisted then stepped up once again, scoring back-to-back points with a kill and a block to increase the lead to 11-7 and force a Saint Francis timeout. Loyola continued to pull away behind back-to-back kills from Jaeschke until a Red Flash service error ended the set at 15-9, giving Loyola the 3-2 victory.

The Ramblers return to Gentile Arena next weekend for a two-game homestand against Sacred Heart and Barton College on Jan. 30-31.