Boxscore (PDF)
VALPARAISO, Ind. (October 5, 2018)
In Short
Quinn Spieker cracked a career-best 22 kills, but Loyola University Chicago (11-7, 3-3 MVC) suffered a heartbreaking loss at Valparaiso (18-3, 5-1 MVC) as the Crusaders rallied to post a 19-25, 23-25, 25-19, 25-22, 15-12 victory at the Athletics-Recreation Center tonight. The loss, which overshadowed senior
Gabi Maciagowski's milestone night in which she notched her 1,000
th career kill, is the Ramblers' third straight and first this season in a five-set match.
How It Happened
Three consecutive Valpo errors and a
Heather Kocken/
Gabi Maciagowski block comprised a 4-0 run that allowed Loyola to gain some separation and take control of the proceedings in opening up a 14-9 lead in the opening set. The Crusaders worked their way back within a pair of points (15-13) thanks to a 4-1 run of their own, but the Ramblers put the set away with three unanswered tallies on their way to a 25-19 victory.
Spieker delivered a pair of kills as part of a 3-0 burst that snapped a tie and gave Loyola an 11-8 advantage in set two. Valpo would overcome the deficit and used a 4-1 run to seize a 19-18 lead before the Ramblers strung together four of the next five points, with
Morgan Gresham having a hand in a pair of them thanks to a kill and a block assist, as Loyola grabbed a 22-20 lead and held on for a 25-23 decision.
Valpo kept the match alive with a 25-19 victory in set three that was made possible thanks to a decisive 10-3 run that gave it a comfortable 14-7 lead. Loyola got within four points on a pair of occasions, the last coming on a
Lexi Alden kill that sliced the deficit to 23-19, but the Crusaders closed out the set with back-to-back scores for the win.
Loyola rallied from a four-point deficit to tie the contest twice late in set four, the final time coming on
Elle Van Grinsven's kill that knotted the score at 21-21. An Allison Ketcham kill followed the stop by Van Grinsven, and from there, Valpo would register three of the final four points to pull out a 25-22 win and force a fifth and deciding set.
In the fifth set, Loyola led by as many as two points, the last coming when Kocken crushed a kill and Van Grinsven and Spieker paired up on a block to put the Ramblers on top, 11-9. However, following a timeout, Valparaiso righted itself, using a Brittany Anderson kill to jumpstart a set-closing 6-1 run that gave the Ramblers their first loss in a five-set match this season.
A Look At The Numbers
- Maciagowski became the first Rambler since Morgan Reardon in 2016 to record her 1,000thcareer kill as a Rambler when she pounded down her eighth stop of the evening in set number five.
- Spieker's 22 kills easily eclipsed her previous career high of 16 set versus Drake on October 14, 2016. She fell one dig shy of recording a double-double.
- Gresham dug a personal-best 23 balls, while Delilah Wolf recorded a double-double with 47 assists and 14 digs.
- Alex Nunez led all players with 29 digs and Van Grinsven pitched in 10 kills and nine blocks.
- Katherine Carlson led Valpo with 14 kills and 24 digs.
Up Next
Loyola is off until it visits Bradley next Friday (Oct. 12).
