Boxscore (PDF)

CHICAGO (September 29, 2018)
 
In Short
Loyola University Chicago (11-6, 3-2 MVC) hit .302 for the match and saw four players total double-digit kills, but its spirited rally ultimately came up short in a 22-25, 19-25, 25-14, 23-25 loss to Drake (13-5, 2-2 MVC) tonight at Gentile Arena.
 
How It Happened
Loyola overcame a sluggish start that saw it fall behind by three points early in set one, recovering to grab a 15-12 lead. Drake would wipe out that deficit and surge back ahead by a point (19-18) before a Morgan Gresham kill evened the proceedings. The teams then exchanged scores before four unanswered points helped the Bulldogs pull away on their way to a 25-22 decision.
 
The Ramblers saw a two-point advantage evaporate in the second set when Drake strung together a 10-3 run that gave it control of the set with a 13-9 lead. Loyola mounted a comeback attempt and a kill from Heather Kocken trimmed the deficit to a point, at 19-18, but Drake countered by recording six of the final seven points of the set to earn a 25-19 victory.
 
Set three was all Loyola, which hit .359 (16-2-39), as it scored the first seven points, three of which came via blocks. The Ramblers were able to withstand a Bulldogs rally that sliced the lead down to 14-12 and forced coach Amanda Berkley to burn a timeout. But, coming out of that break, back-to-back kills from Gabi Maciagowski and Kocken gave Loyola some breathing room and sparked a set-closing 11-2 surge that completed the Ramblers' convincing 25-14 win.
 
Loyola dug itself a six-point hole to open set four, but was able to roar back and even the score at 18, thanks to a 12-6 run, before Drake tallied consecutive points to reclaim the lead for good. The Ramblers made things interesting at the end when Maciagowski and Elle Van Grinsven cracked back-to-back kills to bring the hosts within 24-23, but Grace Schofield put an end to the Loyola rally with a stop of her own to close out the match.
 
A Look At The Numbers

• Maciagowski led all Ramblers with 14 kills, hitting .429 (14-2-28) on the night, while adding six blocks. She now stands just eight kills shy of 1,000 for her career.
• Quinn Spieker(12 kills, 13 digs), Delilah Wolf (48 assists, 12 digs) and Gresham (11 kills, 11 digs) all recorded double-doubles for Loyola, which also received 10 kills and seven blocks from Kocken.
• Schofield led Drake with 14 kills.

 
Up Next
Loyola begins a three-match road trip Friday (Oct. 5) when it makes the short jaunt to Valparaiso. First serve is set for 7 p.m.