WASHINGTON – Loyola Chicago wrapped up the 2024 regular season with a 3-0 sweep against George Washington. The Ramblers secured the No. 3 seed in the Atlantic 10 Tournament and will open post-season play Friday against No. 6 Saint Louis.
The Ramblers finish the regular season on a nine-match win streak, 18-11 overall, and 14-5 in A-10 action.
"Proud of the team for finishing the regular season out with another sweep against GW," said head coach
Amanda Berkley. "Several players stepped up today for us offensively. It was a great team win. Now we have to shift attention to the tournament and prepare this week for another championship."
Bree Borum achieved her second milestone of the weekend, landing fifth in the record book with 3,000 career assists. Borum finished the match with nine kills 31 assists, eight digs, and two blocks.
Esma Ajanovic led the attack with 11 kills, while
Olivia Lovett recorded 10.
Marta Cvitkovic also tallied nine.
Sam Falk had a match and career-high 21 digs. She added seven assists.
How It Happened
Set One: Loyola's first four points came off George Washington errors, but the Ramblers went up 5-2 with a kill from Borum. The teams traded 3-0 runs. Ajanovic tallied kills for all three of Loyola's points to put the Ramblers up, 9-6. Salem Yohannes sparked a 4-0 run for the Revolutionaries to take their first lead, 12-10. Despite two ties, they'd hold on at 17-14, but Loyola found its stride on a 6-1 run. Three Ramblers had kills in the stretch to swing a two-point lead. Errors would plague GW in the final points, giving Loyola the win, 25-22.
Set Two: Ann Marie Remmes, Cvitkovic, and Borum combined for four kills to open the second set, taking a 4-2 edge. Cvitkovic then took control, scoring three points in a 4-0 Rambler run to go up 8-5 with an ace to cap it. GW responded with five unanswered points. Four coming off Loyola attack errors to take their first lead, 10-9. Despite going down again, GW held an 18-17 lead. The set saw for more ties, but Loyola secured the win with two kills from Cvitkovic, 25-23.
Set Three: Borum recorded the first kill of the set and Lovett followed up with two, helping Loyola go up 4-0. Remmes kept momentum going with three straight points on a kill and pair of aces for an 8-2 lead. Ajanovic had back-to-back kills, while Borum capped a 3-0 run to keep Loyola's lead at five. The lead got to double-digits with an 8-1 run by Loyola. Ajanovic, Lovett, and Remmes combined for four kills during the stretch, and the Ramblers led, 21-10. Lovett handed GW the loss with one final kill, 25-15.
Up Next
The A-10 tournament opens next Friday. No. 3 Loyola will play No. 6 Saint Louis on Friday at 2:30 p.m. CT. The winner advances to take on No. 2 VCU on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. CT. This year's tournament will be held by Dayton in Ohio.
