In Short…
The No. 7-ranked Loyola Ramblers had a stellar night from the service line en route to a 3-0 win over the visiting UC San Diego Tritons. The win marked the program's 100^th all-time in Gentile Arena.
 
Coach Hulse's Thoughts
"We did a bunch of stuff well – it was probably our best service night in a while," head coach Mark Hulse said. "Not just because of the aces, but the consistency of [our service]. We defended really well, I don't know if it was our best in terms of feel and some of the rhythm out there, but we did stuff well enough to get the win."
 
How It Happened
Both Collin Mahan and Kyle Piekarski notched 10 kills and were complimented by Luke Denton's four service aces - all of which came in the first set. With the Ramblers doing a good job of finding multiple ways to win a set, each player had their moments in a specific frame to lift the team over the Tritons.
 
Denton was the man who stepped up in the first set and did so right out of the shoot, rattling off four kills within the match's first six points. The Mesa, Arizona, native followed that up with three straight service aces to put Loyola ahead 11-4 and give the team plenty of point support. The Tritons battled back with a 4-0 run to cut their deficit to 16-12, but a Rambler timeout got things back on the rails and the ensuing point-swapping allowed Loyola to come out on top of the first set, 25-20.
 
After a 5-1 start for Loyola in the middle set, UCSD worked it back to 6-4 and seemed to have the momentum. Piekarski put an end to any of it with back-to-back kills that established an 8-4 lead. The Ramblers later extended the score to 15-7 with a 4-0 run, but the Tritons had an answer with a 5-1 run to make the Rambler lead 17-13. With the trend of runs continuing, it was the Ramblers turn with a 3-0 stretch that featured two more Piekarski kills, one of which was made possible by a leaping Garrett Zolg's save on a loose ball. Up 20-13 and forcing a UCSD timeout, Piekarski quietly ran his kill total to eight and guided the attack with a team-lead five in the second set. A couple of Loyola substitutions paid dividends to the tune of a 4-0 run to close out the stanza, 25-15.
 
In the mood for a straight-sets win, Mahan took charge with a perfect 8-for-8 attack performance that doubled the next closest player's third-set kill total. The efficient production was key since the teams found themselves deadlocked on 11 occasions, including the 12-12 mark. Loyola's 12^th point came off a Devin Joslyn kill that sparked a 4-0 run before the media timeout. Up 15-12, Loyola never looked back and managed to capture 10 of the final 14 points thanks in large part to five Mahan kills after the 16-14 mark. For good measure, the senior-captain ripped a service right at UCSD's Xander Jimenez for the cherry on top of a 3-0 win at Gentile.
 
A Look at the Numbers
-In his dominating first set performance, Luke Denton's four service aces is tied for the most by a Rambler individual in a set this season.
-The Maroon and Gold tallied six total aces as a team in the opening frame, setting a new season high.
-Avery Aylsworth picked up nine digs in the contest to eclipse 400 for his career. He now sits at 406.
-Collin Mahan passed 1,000 career points with his 12.5 against the Tritons (10 kills, two aces, one block assist). He will have 1,004 to his credit in his next appearance.
 
Up Next
Loyola goes back on the road next weekend (Jan. 25-26) to joust with CSUN and UC Santa Barbara – teams ranked No. 10 and No. 12 respectively in the Week 2 AVCA Poll. Both matches are scheduled for 9 p.m. CT.