CHICAGO (January 23, 2021) – After having the 2020 fall season pushed back due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Loyola opens the 2021 spring season when it hosts Missouri Valley Conference rival Valparaiso on January 25. The Ramblers are seeking their first win in a season opener since taking down New Hampshire in 2015 and have stumbled in five of their last six lid-lifters. Ironically enough, that win over New Hampshire was also the last time Loyola opened a season with a home match.
 
Loyola has won each of its last two MVC openers and is 3-4 in its first Valley match of a season since joining the league for the 2013 campaign.
 
Loyola is coming off a 21-11 season in 2019, which was the program's winningest campaign since claiming 22 contests in 2004. It was also the Ramblers' first 20-win campaign since going 20-12 in 2015.
Loyola has also recorded back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since doing so eight straight times from 1997 through 2004. Over that eight-year stretch, the Ramblers went 171-81 (.679) overall and 85-19 (.817) in conference play, reaching the NCAA Tournament on three occasions, while averaging 21 wins per season.
 
Prior to last fall, Loyola had never finished higher than sixth in the Missouri Valley Conference regular-season race. However, in 2019, head coach Amanda Berkley steered her squad to a program-record 14 conference wins, eclipsing the 2001 and 2002 squads that each won 13 matches in Horizon League play. Last fall marked the first time since 2004 that Loyola won 10 or more conference matches.
 
Loyola and Valparaiso have split the last four meetings between the teams, although the Ramblers swept the 2019 regular-season series, winning both matches in three sets. Since the Crusaders joined the MVC, Loyola is 2-4 against its local rival. In last season's two victories over Valpo, Loyola hit .267 (88-32-210).
 
Scouting Valparaiso
Valparaiso is coming off a 14-20 season in 2019 in which it won two of its final three, and three of its final five, matches. Head coach Carin Avery's squad struggled away from home last season, posting a 4-10 ledger in true road contests, although the Crusaders did claim two of their final three matches away from the Athletics-Recreation Center. First Team All-MVC senior middle hitter Peyton McCarthy leads this year's Valpo squad and is coming off a 2019 campaign in which she tallied 2.85 kills and 0.90 blocks per set, hitting .260 (362-138-860). Meanwhile, junior outside hitter Jillie Grant put up 2.49 kills and 2.57 digs per set in 2019.
 
Up Next
Loyola hosts Butler January 29 before closing out the regular-season series with Valparaiso with a match at the Athletics-Recreation Center on February 1.