Boxscore (PDF)

CHICAGO (September 28, 2018) 
 
In Short
Piper Thomas recorded a match-high 18 kills to help UNI (9-6, 3-0 MVC) hold off a valiant effort from host Loyola University Chicago (11-5, 3-1 MVC) for a 25-22, 25-23, 25-22 victory tonight at Gentile Arena. The loss breaks the Ramblers' three-match winning streak and prevents their first 4-0 start to conference play since 2002.
 
How It Happened
Loyola trailed by three points in the early stages of the first set before using a 7-2 run that featured three kills from Morgan Gresham and was capped by a block courtesy of Heather Kocken and Gabi Maciagowski, to grab a 12-10 lead. UNI battled back to tie the score and reclaimed the lead for good thanks to a brief 3-0 spurt that provided the Panthers with a 17-14 edge. The Ramblers had their most efficient set of the night, hitting .300 (12-2-30) in the 25-22 setback.
 
UNI broke free in set two, assembling an 8-3 run that snapped a tie and gave it a 18-13 advantage. Loyola trailed 23-19 late but refused to go down quietly, scratching its way back into the contest as Quinn Spieker and Elle Van Grinsven delivered kills in a 3-0 spurt that got the Ramblers within 23-22. However, Loyola was unable to complete the comeback as the Panthers claimed a 25-23 win with Rachel Koop providing a kill for set point.
 
The Ramblers bolted to a quick start and notched four unanswered points, punctuated by a Lauren Capriniservice ace, for a 7-3 lead. Loyola's lead sat at 16-13 after Spieker hammered home another kill, giving the Ramblers hopes of extending the match to a fourth set, but UNI had different plans, and a Loyola error sparked a set-changing 7-2 run that moved the Panthers ahead to stay, at 20-18. After trailing by as many as three points, the Ramblers whittled the deficit down to a single point (23-22) on a UNI attack error, but Thomas and Kate Busswitz stepped up to stop the LU rally to earn the Panthers a 25-22 decision.
 
A Look At The Numbers
- Spieker led all Ramblers with 10 kills, hitting .348 (10-2-23) on the night, while adding six digs.
- Gresham totaled nine kills, while Maciagowski added six stops and five blocks.
- Maciagowski enters tomorrow's match versus Drake needing 22 kills to reach 1,000 for her career.
 
Up Next
Loyola has a quick turnaround and wraps up a three-match homestand tomorrow at 7 p.m. when it hosts Drake.