CEDAR FALLS, Iowa (November 20, 2021)
 
In Short
Thanks to a team-high 12 kills from Emily Banitt, Loyola University Chicago (21-9, 14-4 MVC) picked up a 25-10, 28-26, 16-25, 25-17 decision over Northern Iowa (12-19, 7-11 MVC) tonight at the McLeod Center to win the Missouri Valley Conference regular season championship outright. With last Saturday's victory over Illinois State, the Ramblers clinched at least a share of the league crown, but now will be the No. 1 seed at next weekend's MVC Championship and own sole possession of the conference title.
 
How It Happened
After a disappointing result last night at Drake, Loyola came out with a vigor in the opening set tonight, hitting a scalding .435 (12-2-23) to breeze to a 25-10 decision and take control of the match. Three different players recorded kills as the Ramblers accounted for seven of the first eight points of the set and never looked back. Loyola led 11-5 when it assembled an 11-2 run that completely buried the Panthers on the way to the easy win.
 
Two more kills from Banitt were part of another quick start as Loyola darted out to a 6-1 lead in set two. Northern Iowa clawed its way back, eventually knotting the score at 17-17. Loyola was able to reclaim the lead, scoring five of six points to break open a 23-19 edge, but once again, UNI worked its way back to even the score at 23-23. Following a brief exchange of points, Sarah Murczek capped off a wild set by tallying a kill, then followed that up with a service ace, for a thrilling, 28-26 win.
 
UNI was able to keep the match alive thanks to a 7-0 burst that snapped a tie and provided it with a 21-14 lead on the way to a 25-16 victory in the third set. Nothing went the Ramblers' way in the third set as they hit just .043 (9-7-46).
 
Loyola took the lead just a few points into set four, seizing control for good on a block from Murczek and Kelsey Watson. Clinging to an 8-7 advantage, the Ramblers administered the knockout punch with a 10-4 run that began with back-to-back Taylor Venuto kills and included three additional stops from Murczek. Another hot-hitting effort keyed the victory as Loyola notched a .412 (16-2-34) hitting percentage in the 25-17 decision.
 
A Look at the Numbers

• Banitt led all Ramblers with 12 kills on the night, hitting .455 (12-2-22) as she more than helped make up for the absence of Addie Barnes. 
• Four other Loyola players drilled seven or more kills, with Anna Feldkamp and Murczek tallying nine each. 
• Venuto pitched in eight kills and Karlie McNabb dropped in seven kills, while Grace Hinchman produced 19 digs and three aces.
• With the win, Loyola equaled the 2019 team's program record for conference wins, regardless of league affiliation, with 14.
• As a team, the Ramblers hit .231 (51-17-147) on the evening.

 
Up Next
Loyola will play the winner of the No. 4 Valparaiso versus No. 5 Evansville match in the semifinal round of the MVC Championship on Friday, Nov. 26, at 3:30 p.m. CT in Normal, Ill.