CHICAGO (April 15, 2021) - Second-seeded Loyola (14-5) hosts No. 3 seed McKendree (11-5) Saturday night in a Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (MIVA) Tournament semifinal match at The Alfie Norville Practice Facility. The Ramblers are chasing their first NCAA Tournament berth since 2015, when they won the second of back-to-back national championships.

Dating back to 2013, the Ramblers have prevailed five of the last six times they have reached the MIVA Tournament semifinals, with the lone loss coming in 2016 to Lewis. All-time, Loyola is 12-8 in MIVA semifinal matches and dating back to 2001, it has reached the MIVA semifinals 19 of the last 20 times the tournament has been played.

The last No. 2 seed to win the MIVA Tournament championship, ironically enough, was Loyola in 2015, when it knocked off top-seeded Lewis in the championship match and would later defeat the Flyers in an epic NCAA championship contest for its second straight national title.

Cole Schlothauer, a First Team All-MIVA selection for the second straight season, has been a thorn in McKendree's side in his young collegiate career, hitting .389 (47-10-95) with 4.29 kills and 2.00 digs per set in three career matches versus the Bearcats.

In its last three matchups with McKendree, Loyola has hit .325 (165-52-348 as a team.

Loyola – McKendree – The Series

Loyola has won each of the previous 14 meetings in the series with McKendree and is undefeated in nine matches against the Bearcats in Chicago. Saturday's match is the first meeting between the teams in MIVA Tournament action. When the teams last paired up, on March 19 at The Alfie Norville Practice Facility, Luke Denton ripped 25 kills and added 11 digs and Cole Schlothauer totaled 17 kills, to power the Ramblers to a four-set victory over then-No. 8 McKendree. In series history, Loyola has dropped only four sets to McKendree overall and is 27-2 all-time in sets played versus the Bearcats in the Windy City.

Scouting McKendree

Since getting swept by Loyola in a two-match series in Chicago four weeks ago, McKendree has won three of its last five contests and is coming off a thrilling 27-25, 20-25, 29-27, 25-27, 15-13 victory over Purdue Fort Wayne in the MIVA quarterfinals last Saturday. The Bearcats are 4-3 in true road matches this season but are just 1-3 in their last four outings on the road. Redshirt junior setter Ryan Serrano, who earned First Team All-MIVA accolades this season, leads a McKendree offense that gets 3.74 kills per set from senior outside hitter Patrick Ross. The Bearcats lead the MIVA in blocks per set (1.94).

Up Next

The winner of Saturday's game between Loyola and McKendree will advance to the MICA Championship final, where it will face either Lewis or Ball State on April 24.