STANFORD, Calif. – The No. 10 Loyola University Chicago men's volleyball team rallied and won two-straight sets to force five with No. 8 Stanford, but ultimately fell, 21-25, 17-25, 25-18, 27-25, 12-15, on the road Monday night. The loss caps four-straight matches in which Loyola has faced a top-10 foe on the road.

Two more top-10 teams are on the Ramblers' docket inside Gentile Arena. Click here to purchase tickets to No. 9 BYU (Jan. 11) and No. 1 UCLA (Jan. 13) at Gentile.

"We didn't come out with the right energy to start the match," said Loyola Chicago head coach, John Hawks. "We went to the bench and some guys came in who really gave us a lift. Colton Brooks, being in his hometown, came in and made some plays when we needed them. Daniel Fabikovic had the best first couple of sets and Miller Trubey was bombing some serves from the endline. I'm proud of the team. I'm proud of everybody's effort, and it was a brutal trip. I'm looking forward to growing, learning, and developing as we progress forward,"

How it Happened
Loyola Chicago fell behind 12-9 in the opening set after a 4-0 run from the Cardinal, but the 'Blers used a 4-1 run of their own to knot the set, 15-15, after Parker Van Buren's kill and a Stanford error. The two squads battled back-and-forth through the remainder of the set before, at the Cardinal set point, Van Buren's kill from Ryan McElligott made the score 24-21. Stanford logged the set-winning kill via Ethan Hall as Loyola turned its attention to set two.

The Maroon and Gold held a 5-4 edge early in the second frame, but two quick points from Stanford helped them regain the edge and not look back. LUC held tough though as a 3-0 run, which included back-to-back kills from Colton Brooks, cut the deficit to 15-12. But the Cardinal ended the frame on a 10-5 run to seal the set win.

In need of a comeback, the Ramblers fought tooth and nail to take control of the third set. The hard work paid off as Loyola ended the set with its best hitting percentage of the match (.579) and 14 kills. Leading 16-15, LUC saw Miller Trubey log a career-high four aces, adding to an 8-2 run to give the 'Blers set point at 24-17. Aidan Klien gave the Maroon and Gold the set-winning kill from McElligott, extending the match to at least four sets.

Stanford attempted to end the match in four, hitting .458, but the Ramblers' relentlessness led to a dog fight. Back-and-forth through the frame, the set was eventually tied, 24-24. Brooks led the 'Blers to 25-24 with a kill, but Stanford matched the point. Finally, at 26-25, Trubey posted the set-winner after an assist from McElligott to force a fifth set.

Finally, the 10 days of travel and two new time zones caught up with Loyola Chicago. Stanford outlasted the Ramblers in a tightly contested final set, 15-12.

Notes

• McElligott owned a match-high 46 assists as the primary setter. He added two blocks and four digs while registering five kills on seven swings (.714).
• Trubey posted a team-best 11 kills on 17 swings. He achieved five service aces and four digs.
• Jake Read led Loyola with six digs. He posted nine kills, the team's second-most.
• Meinhart led the net at the net with three blocks while totaling eight kills on 11 swings (.727).
• Loyola led the match with 11 aces. Both teams stumbled with 19 service errors.

Up Next
The squad will return home after its 10-day excursion and face No. 9 BYU Thursday (Jan. 11) inside Gentile for its home-opener. First serve is set for 7 p.m. CT and will stream live on NBC Sports Chicago Plus.