NORMAL, Ill.  (November 26, 2021)
 
In Short
Taylor Venuto hammered out a team-high 13 kills and Loyola University Chicago (22-9) limited No. 4 seed Valparaiso (22-9) to .136 (64-37-199) hitting in a 23-25, 25-19, 26-24, 18-25, 15-13 victory this afternoon at Redbird Arena in a semifinal match of the Missouri Valley Conference Championship. With the win, the top-seeded Ramblers advance to tomorrow's championship match where they will face Illinois State for the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. 
 
How It Happened
In a back-and-forth battle, Valparaiso took the opening set, 25-23, thanks to a stretch of four unanswered points that broke a tie and gave the Beacons a 23-19 lead they would never relinquish. Loyola made Valpo sweat down the stretch, getting within 24-23, behind two kills from Taylor Veunto in a 4-1 spurt that cut the gap, but a Bella Ravotto kill squashed the Ramblers' hopes for a comeback.
 
Loyola's blocking helped lift it to a 25-19 decision in set two to even the match at a set apiece. The Ramblers took control of the set when a solo block from Venuto opened up a 3-0 burst that was capped by a Kelsey Watson/Emily Banitt block that erased a one-point deficit and gave the Ramblers a 13-11 advantage. Loyola stretched the lead to four, at 17-13, and after a Beacons point, Loyola spun off five of the next six tallies, including a kill and a solo block from Venuto, to run the lead to 22-15.
 
A 6-1 run put Valpo in the driver's seat in set three as it wiped away a one-point deficit and gave the Beacons an 11-7 lead. Loyola looked to be in dire straits trailing 18-11, but Watson pounded a pair of kills and assisted on two blocks to bring the Ramblers back to life and back into the set, down just 18-17. Following a Valpo point that briefly stemmed the tide, Anna Feldkamp ripped a kill, then teamed with Venuto for a block, before Karlie McNabb hammered home a kill to put Loyola ahead, 20-19. Loyola extended the lead to 24-21 but three straight Valpo scores tied things up before Venuto and Banitt deposited consecutive kills to finish off a thrilling, 26-24 victory.
 
Valpo's 8-2 run early in the fourth set was the deciding factor in the Beacons' 25-18 victory. With the score deadlocked at 3-3, a kill from Ravotto opened up the game-changing run, that when concluded, put Valpo on top, 11-5. Valpo hit .350 (18-4-40) to force a fifth set.
 
Three unanswered points, including kills by Lane Jenkins and Banitt put Loyola ahead to stay, at 6-4, in a nail-biting, 15-13 victory in set five. The Ramblers led by as many as four points (11-7) and were in possession of a 14-11 advantage until back-to-back Beacons points cut the lead to one. Banitt stepped up when her squad needed her and delivered her 11^thkill of the match to close out the win and send Loyola to the MVC Championship title match for the second straight season.
 
A Look at the Numbers

• In addition to her 13 kills, Venuto contributed six blocks and four digs, while hitting .310 (13-4-29).
• Despite missing last weekend's match due to illness, Addie Barnes showed no signs of rust, delivering another double-double, tallying 12 kills and 15 digs, while Banitt gave thee Ramblers 11 kills, five digs and four rejections.
• Watson recorded nine kills and seven blocks and Lane Jenkins doled out 30 assists and put up 14 digs.
• Grace Hinchman put up 26 digs and as a team Loyola totaled 14 blocks.
• Maddy Boyer led Valpo with 15 kills.

 
Up Next
Loyola will face No. 2 seed Illinois State in tomorrow's championship match. First serve is scheduled for 4 p.m. CT on ESPN+ and the winner will receive The Valley's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. A win would give the Ramblers their first NCAA Tournament berth since 2005.