BRISTOL, Tenn. (Jan. 29, 2022) – The second leg of the Tennessee series led the Loyola University Chicago men's volleyball team to Bristol to take on the Tornado of King University. After five sets, the Maroon and Gold were able to come out with the win, squeezing past King 3-2.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Tornado took an early lead over the Ramblers, but it didn't last long. Loyola came back strong halfway through the first set to keep King at bay with a score of 25-18 in favor of the Maroon and Gold. 
 
From there, the Tornado wanted revenge. They fired back against the Ramblers in both the second and third sets. Loyola scored first in both sets, but it wasn't long before King swept in and took the lead. Once they had it, they never let it go. This resulted in a 25-20 loss in the second and a 25-22 loss in the third for the Ramblers. 
 
However, it wasn't over from there. Loyola came back and dominated the fourth set. They didn't give the Tornado any chance to make a comeback as the Ramblers won the fourth set 25-18 to take it to a fifth set. 
 
The Ramblers kept the momentum going into the fifth set and did not let up. Although the Tornado came back to tie the game, they did not keep with it for long. Loyola ultimately won the final set 15-12.
 
LOOKING AT THE NUMBERS

• Parker Van Buren has done it yet again for the Ramblers as he led the team in kills with 18. He also maintained a hitting percentage of .429 with only three errors on 35 attempts.
• Henry Payne was a key contributor to the offense for Loyola. He ended the game with 14 kills. On defense, he registered the most blocks on the team with six. 
• Garrett Zolg continues to be a crucial part of Loyola's line up. Even as the setter, he contributed six kills. As the playmaker for the Maroon and Gold, he had 36 assists. He also finished the night with eight digs, which was the most on the team.
• Along with Payne's front row defensive efforts, Jimmy Meinhart and Ben Montplasair also made a big impact for Loyola. They each tallied five blocks. 

 
UP NEXT
The Ramblers will be back in Gentile on Friday, Feb. 4, as they host No. 6 Grand Canyon University, and Saturday, Feb. 5, against Central State University. First serve for both of those games will be at 7 p.m.