CHICAGO (January 29, 2020) – Before beginning conference play next week, the Loyola University Chicago men's volleyball team heads east visit No. 12 George Mason (3-3) on Friday, January 31. The Ramblers face Barton (3-0) the following day, also hosted at George Mason. Friday's match begins at 6 pm CT while Saturday's is at 4 pm CT. 

Last Time Out: Loyola dropped from No. 15 and is receiving votes this week after back-to-back victories over Charleston (W. Va) and Urbana last weekend. The Ramblers started the weekend off strong with a 3-1 victory over Charleston that gave the program its 500th win since it began in 1996. As a team, Loyola tallied a season-high 11 service aces from six different Ramblers against Charleston. The last time Loyola recorded that many aces was on April 6, 2019 against Quincy (10). The Loyola single-game record for aces is 16, set on January 16, 2006. In Saturday's 3-0 sweep over Urbana, five Ramblers either posted career-highs or tied career-highs. Andrew Lyons recorded career-highs in kills (five) and aces (two). Devin Joslyn posted a career-high 13 kills and tied his career-high with four blocks. Anton Frank tallied a career-high four blocks and three digs. Ian Cowen registered a career-high two aces and Kyle Piekarski tied his career-high in kills with 12. Loyola posted its highest hitting percentage all season against Urbana (.469) while Piekarski reached a career-high hitting percentage, registering 12 kills on 14 attacks (.857 percent).

Scouting the Patriots: In his fifth year as head coach, Jay Hosack returns 11 letterwinners that led the team to a 17-9 (7-3 EIVA) record last season. Seniors Hayden Wagner and Sam Greenslade are among those leaders after seeing fantastic seasons in 2019. Wagner was a 2019 AVCA All-America Honorable Mention, First Team All-EIVA Selection and All-EIVA Tournament Team selection. The opposite was ranked first in the EIVA and fifth in the country in kills per set (4.26) and first in the EIVA and third in the nation in points per set (5.20) last season. Greenslade finished the 2019 season with the team lead in service aces (38) and second on the team in total kills (215), leading to his first career First Team All-EIVA selection. Greenslade currentlly leads the team with five aces and is second in kills (49) and digs (47). Sophomore Richie Hoff leads the Patriots with 55 kills this season while redshirt sophomore Zach Talamoa has recorded 113 assists. George Mason was selected to finish third in the EIVA men's volleyball preseason poll behind Princeton and Penn State.

Scouting the Bulldogs: Head coach Jeff Lennox enters his eighth season with the Bulldogs, who finished 25-5 (14-2) in 2019, won the Conference Carolinas and fell to Princeton in the NCAA First Round. Senior Angelos Mandilaris leads the Bulldogs with 57 kills this season, averaging 5.18 kills per set. Mandilaris earned All-American Honorable Mention honors last year and is a two-time Conference Carolinas Offensive Player of the Year (2018, 2019). The opposite hitter is also a three-time First Team All-League Selection (2017-19) who set a school single record for kills last season with 46. Also leading the Bulldogs is sophomore outside hitter Adrian Iglesias, who is second on the team with 34 kills, and senior setter Oscar Fiorentino, who is averaging 9.09 assists per set. 

Series Stuff: The Ramblers have only lost four of their 20 matches against George Mason since 1996. Loyola has won the last three meetings and last met GMU on January 12, 2018 at home, taking a 3-1 victory. Loyola has only met Barton one time, defeating the Bulldogs, 3-0 on January 31, 2015. 

Up Next: Loyola hosts its first conference match of the season on Saturday, February 8, welcoming Purdue Fort Wayne to Gentile Arena at 7 pm.