FORT WAYNE, Ind. (March 12, 2021)
 
In Short
Luke Denton delivered a team-high 20 kills to lead Loyola University Chicago (9-3, 5-3 MIVA) to a wildly entertaining 28-30, 30-28, 25-23, 25-22 victory over host Purdue Fort Wayne (3-5, 3-5 MIVA) tonight at the Gates Sports Center. The win puts an end to the Ramblers' three-match slide and also extends their winning streak over the Mastodons in Fort Wayne to 12 contests. Loyola has not fallen to Purdue Fort Wayne at the Gates Sports Center since 2009.
 
How It Happened
Four Ramblers tallied kills, including two by freshman Ben Montplaisir, in a 5-1 spurt that snapped an early tie and gave Loyola an 11-7 lead. The host Mastodons roared back from a 17-13 deficit behind the play of Rico Wardlow and Vicente Ibarra to grab a 20-19 lead, but a Luke Denton kill knotted the score at 20-20. From there, the combatants traded points until a Loyola service error and Pelegrin Vargas kill provided the difference in Purdue Fort Wayne's stirring 30-28 victory. 
 
Loyola pulled off an improbable win to even the match, rallying from a 24-19 deficit to notch a 30-28 victory in the second set. With Purdue Fort Wayne serving set point, Denton drilled a kill to keep the Ramblers alive and what followed was nothing short of spectacular. Consecutive assisted blocks by Cole Schlothauer and Montplaisir gave Loyola renewed vigor and following a Fort Wayne timeout, Denton added another stop before Garrett Zolg served up back-to-back aces to give the Ramblers a 25-24 advantage. The teams then exchanged tallies until Denton and Schlothauer mashed consecutive kills for the come-from-behind victory.
 
Loyola appeared to be in the driver's seat when it was in possession of a 17-13 lead in set three, but a 6-2 Purdue Fort Wayne burst that was capped by a kill from Ibarra, drew the Mastodons even at 19-19. The Ramblers moved back ahead by a pair of tallies (22-20) thanks to a Fort Wayne attack error and a Schlothauer kill, but that lead evaporated and Rico Wardlow's kill tied things up yet again, this time at 23-23 in a back-and-forth affair. Ultimately though, the Ramblers weathered the storm and kills courtesy of Brooks and Schlothauer finished off a hard-fought 25-23 Loyola victory.
 
Purdue Fort Wayne charged to a five-point advantage in set four, only to have Loyola rally to even the proceedings (14-14) in a match where truly no lead was safe. The Mastodons reclaimed momentum, surging ahead, 21-18, but the Ramblers would not be denied in this thrilling match. 
 
Colton Brooks' kill started a stretch that saw Loyola tally seven of the final eight points of the set to secure a 25-22 victory in arguably the most entertaining match of the year.  Schlothauer carried the team to the win down the stretch, cracking four kills in that decisive run to finish off the set, and Denton and Montplaisir paired up on a block to finish off the Mastodons.
 
A Look at the Numbers

• In addition to his career-high 20 kills, Denton also provided his squad with five digs and four blocks, while Schlothauer produced 16 kills and eight digs.
• Brooks was the third Rambler to reach double figures in kills, totaling 11 to go with his eight digs and three rejections.
• As a team, Loyola hit .321 (61-16-140) and got a season-high seven kills and four blocks from Montplaisir and a career-best 15 digs from Jack Yentz. Meanwhile, Zolg dished out a season-best 53 assists and posted seven digs and a pair of aces.
• Ibarra (24) and Vargas (21) hammered out 20-plus kills to lead Purdue Fort Wayne's attack, which finished with a .313 (65-19-147) hitting percentage for the night.

 
Up Next
Loyola hosts Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (MIVA) leader McKendree for a two-match series, March 18 and 19.