In Short…
Loyola took care of business and defeated Lindenwood in four sets on Friday, April 5. The Ramblers benefited from 16 kills apiece from Collin Mahan and Will Tischler, while Avery Aylsworth chipped in 14 digs to exceed 200 for the second consecutive season.

Coach Hulse's Thoughts:
"We stayed really aggressive and really intense with our focus in our energy and commitment, and I thought our teammate interactions were really good," head coach Mark Hulse said. "All of that has been as much of a focus for us the last few weeks, as has some of the volleyball stuff."
 
How It Happened
Each team traded 3-0 runs early in the opening set to represent two of the 10 ties in the stanza, happening at the 8-8 and 11-11 marks. Another 3-0 run that had two Kyle Piekarski blocks put Loyola up 15-13, but Lindenwood roared back to retake the lead at 16-15.  Anchored by back-to-back Garrett Zolg kills, the Ramblers sprung ahead for good with a stretch that put them up 19-17. The Lions managed to keep it close, but the late upper hand by the home team was too much for them to overcome, as Piekarski's lone kill of the frame inked a 25-21 opening set win.
 
A slow start doomed the Ramblers in the second frame as the Lions raced out to a 10-5 lead. Loyola initially got back within striking distance with a 3-0 run, but Lindenwood regained control and worked its lead up to six at 18-12. After the Lions made the lead seven at 24-17, Loyola worked off five set points with Kyler Kotsakis at the service line, but the furious comeback fell short as the Lions escaped with a 25-22 set two victory.
 
An 8-0 Loyola run set the tone in the swing-set and pushed the Ramblers to a 12-5 lead. Will Tischler was responsible for four of those points, racking up three kills and one block in that stretch. The outside hitter continued his torrid pace through the set by adding four more throughout, including a hard-hit shot that widened the lead to 19-13. As the set began to wind down, Mahan picked up two kills in the late stages to help Loyola finish strong with a 25-18 set three triumph.
 
Set four began in a similar fashion as its predecessor, as a pair of 3-0 runs anchored the Ramblers to an early 7-3 lead. In what would turn out to be the last set of the night, Mahan took over with six kills to run his match total to 16. He notched one in a key spot on the other side of the media timeout to put his team up 16-11, and another in the middle of a 3-0 run that extended the lead even further to 21-14. With five kills in the set himself, Piekarski had two of them within the match's final three points, including the final nail in the coffin of a 25-18 set four win.
 
A Look at the Numbers
-Garrett Zolg registered his 14^th match this season of 40 or more kills and surpassed 1,000 on the campaign in the process.
-Will Tischler ripped the 600^th kill of his career on Friday night, and also tallied six blocks to tie his career high.
-Clubbing an efficient 16 kills on .519 hitting, Collin Mahan converted his second highest attack percentage in a match this season.
-Avery Aylsworth is now one dig away from the program's Top-10 career digs list after recording a 14-dig night. He enters Saturday with 569.
 
Up Next
Loyola finishes the regular season with a 7 p.m. contest against Quincy on Saturday (April 6) at Gentile Arena. The match is the program's annual Senior Night with a special ceremony honoring the 2019 Senior Class.