First Serve
Breaking from MIVA action, No. 11 Loyola University Chicago men's volleyball rides a three-match win streak into Monday's matchup with No. 15 Princeton. First serve inside Gentile Arena is set for 4 p.m. CT with the match streaming live on ESPN+. Peter Ferreri (PXP) and Ray Gooden (Commentary) will call the action. 

Notes

• The Ramblers most recently downed No. 7 Ohio State in five sets (25-22, 20-25, 30-28, 15-25, 15-12) for the second time in 2024, its second season sweep of a MIVA foe this season. LUC has also beaten Purdue Fort Wayne twice this year.
• In Loyola's win versus the Buckeyes, Parker Van Buren tallied a team-high 19 kills while Daniel Fabikovic added 15.
• Loyola ended the match hitting .339 while limiting OSU to .366.
• The Maroon and Gold posted 54 kills in the win.
• LUC's 14 blocks marked its second most of the season thus far.
• Deem Meyer's six blocks were a match-high. He had five block assists and two solos.
• Dan Mangun, who's returned to full-health after missing the start of 2024 due to a hand injury, nearly had a double-double with nine digs and 46 assists.
• Loyola has enjoyed a 3-1 all-time series lead with Tigers.
• The pair met last season on March 25. 2023, when Loyola fell in four sets (28-30, 25-16, 25-23, 31-29) on a neutral floor.
• Van Buren and Cole Schlothauer each tallied 15 kills to lead the Ramblers in the loss. Matt Oakley registered a team-high 14 digs while Mangun recorded 47 assists.
• Loyola assistant coach Lindsay Brown previously worked with Princeton for one season before joining John Hawks' staff. The Tigers advanced to the EIVA Championship finals in 2023 and finished the year ranked 14th nationally while having five players garner All-EIVA honors with Brown on staff.
• This season, Princeton holds an even 8-8 overall record and is 2-3 in EIVA matches. It sits in fourth place in the six-team league.
• The Tigers are coming off a straight-set win over George Mason on March 1. 
• Following its match with Princeton, Loyola has two more home matches on deck as it faces Quincy (March 14) and McKendree (March 16).
• The Ramblers currently rank in the top-10 of three NCAA statistical categories: kills per set at 12.52 (No. 9), hitting percentage at .337 (No. 6), and assists per set at 11.81 (No. 7).
• LUC ranks third in the MIVA in blocks per set (2.15) while opponents muster just 1.60 blocks per set against LUC, the second-best mark in the conference.
• Loyola's .337 hitting percentage paces the MIVA.
• Meyer, who tallied the third most blocks as any sophomore in program history (127), has his sights set on the junior record (129, James Grunst, '09). Currently, he leads the league and is 10th nationally with 1.06 blocks per set. He's racked up 68.0 thus far.
• Van Buren sits No. 2 in the MIVA's kills per set rankings and eighth nationally as he slams down an average of 3.92 kills per set.
• Loyola Chicago's gauntlet of a schedule ranks No. 7 on the NCAA's toughest schedule report. It's past opposition percentage (.587) is the toughest in the MIVA. 
• The Ramblers, who have been a staple in the AVCA/NVA National Collegiate MVB Poll all season, were most recently ranked No. 11 in the latest coaches' poll.
• Loyola's second home match of 2024 was against defending national champions, UCLA, Jan. 13. The recorded attendance of 3,334 was a program record at Gentile Arena for a regular-season match.

2023 Was a Fun One
After playing its foes to a 21-7 overall record and an 11-3 mark in conference play, Loyola Chicago earned a share of the 2023 regular season MIVA title, its first time since 2018. The 'Blers saw just one loss on their home floor, compiling a home record of 14-1.

The Best of the Best
The postseason awards poured in for the Ramblers last spring: John Hawks was named the MIVA Coach of the Year, and a league-leading six Ramblers were named to All-League teams. Hawks became the first Loyola coach to win the award in their first season at the helm of the program, while the award marks the seventh time in Loyola history that a coach has been named MIVA Coach of the Year. It was Loyola's first Coach of the Year award since 2018, and Hawks is the fourth different Rambler head coach to win the award. Likewise, Parker Van Buren, who fell just shy of being selected as the MIVA Player of the Year, picked up his second All-MIVA First Team honor in as many seasons after ranking second in the conference and fifth nationally with 4.13 kills per set. Cole Schlothauer became a four-time All-MIVA First Team honoree following a standout redshirt senior season and Dan Mangun picked up his first career All-MIVA honor with First Team recognition. Additionally, Loyola's two middle blockers and starting libero were all named All-MIVA Second Team, with Nicodemus Meyer, Jimmy Meinhart and Matt Oakley all being selected. For all three, the award marked the first All-League honor of their careers.

Revenge Tour
Although the Ramblers saw great successes in 2023, the season was cut shorter than the team would've liked. Loyola Chicago was upset in the first round of the MIVA Tournament by McKendree in five sets at Gentile Arena. Loyola, who entered the tournament as the No. 2 seed, had nearly a 100-point advantage in hitting percentage over the seventh-seeded Bearcats (.415/.333) and was +6 in total blocks but was unable to fend off the resilient McKendree squad. The Maroon and Gold aim to make a deeper run in the postseason in 2024.

An Exciting Slate
The two-time NCAA national champions are set to compete in 27 matches, including 15 inside Gentile Arena, this season.  The 'Blers kick off their home slate of action Jan. 11 as they host BYU for a single match. Two days later on Jan. 13, Loyola Chicago will welcome the defending NCAA national champions, UCLA, to Gentile. The six-match homestand continues Jan. 19-27 with matches against Kentucky State (Jan. 19), Merrimack (Jan. 20), Long Island Brooklyn (Jan. 26), and George Mason (Jan. 27). The Ramblers begin MIVA play Feb. 1, facing Ball State to commence league action.

Classroom Ballers
This past July, the AVCA announced that Loyola had earned its sixth United States Marine Corps and American Volleyball Coaches Association's Team Academic Award. The Ramblers were one-of-38 NCAA men's volleyball programs and one-of-four members from the MIVA to take the plaudit. Through the 2022-23 academic year, the Ramblers culminated an impressive, combined team GPA of 3.49. Also, A total of 18 student-athletes earned Academic All-MIVA honors.

The No. 4 Recruiting Class
Joining the group of 17 returners is a strong class of 10 freshmen who will look to make an immediate impact on the 2024 squad. The class, ranked No. 4 in the nation by VolleyballMag.com, features seven newcomers hailing from California, two from Illinois, and one from the Czech Republic. Eight of the 10 student-athletes were tabbed to the 2023 VolleyballMag.com Boys Fab 50, the most selections of any DI-II program. Additionally, Cole Schobel was ranked the top setter in the class of 2023 by VolleyballMag.com and Daniel Fabikovic helped the U18 Czech Republic national team earn a silver medal at the European Championships.

A New Face on Staff
New Loyola assistant Lindsay Brown heads to Rogers Park after spending the 2023 season at Princeton where she served as the program's assistant coach and recruiting coordinator. The Tigers advanced to the EIVA Championship finals this past season and finished the year ranked 14th nationally while having five players garner All-EIVA honors. This past fall, Brown served as an assistant coach on the U.S. Boy's U19 National Team at the 2023 FIVB U19 World Championship. The team recorded its best placement ever, taking fourth in San Juan, Argentina.

Promoted!
Second-year assistant Ali'i Keohohou was elevated to associate head coaching late August. Prior to his time in Rogers Park, Keohohou was head coach at the University of Mount Olive for four seasons. He was named the Conference Carolinas Coach of the Year in 2021 and led his team to two Conference Carolinas final appearances.

NORCECA Dayz
Instead of joining the team in Italy, Parker Van Buren was hard at work in Anaheim, Calif. training with USA Volleyball in hopes of competing at the 2023 NORCECA Men's Pan American Cup. Van Buren's dream came true as he was tabbed to the travel roster in August. In the team's first match, Van Buren led in the 3-0 win over Puerto Rico with 15 points on 14 kills. Then in the 3-1 win over Chile, Van Buren led for the second-straight match with 21 points, 19 kills and two blocks. His team finished in fifth place after sweeping Colombia.

Cali Boyz
West coast volleyball is alive and well within the Loyola Chicago program. Hawks, who's from Huntington Beach Calif, and Keohohou, who was born in Thousand Oaks, Calif., join 11 of Loyola's 27 student-athletes who hail from the west coast (California). 13 are from Illinois.

Ciao, 'Blers!
The Ramblers enjoyed a 10-day excursion in Italy this summer. The tour, which spanned Aug. 6-16, provided an opportunity for the student-athletes to witness a different culture, learn new perspectives, and visit awe-inspiring localities. In addition to seeing the beautiful sites the country has to offer, throughout the trip, Loyola competed against local clubs in three separate matches.

Meyer Rising
Nicodemus Meyer was selected to the U21 Junior National Training Team in May. In his first season as a starter in Rogers Park, Meyer made an immediate impact for the Ramblers. Meyer finished the season third nationally with 1.23 blocks per set. The 6-foot-10 middle blocker averaged 1.40 kills per set out of the middle while registering the highest hitting percentage (.467) on the team among Loyola's starters. Meyer's 20 solo blocks, 107 block assists, and 127 total blocks all rank third for any sophomore at Loyola. 

AVCA All-Americans
Behind Second Team All-American Parker Van Buren, a trio of Ramblers earned AVCA All-American honors last season. Van Buren became the first Loyola men's volleyball player to earn Second Team honors since 2019, while Cole Schlothauer and Dan Mangun earned Honorable Mention accolades.

Preseason Nods
Getting in on the preseason hype was Parker Van Buren and Nicodemus Meyer who were named to the Preseason All-MIVA Team. It was Van Buren's second-straight year being named to the Preseason All-MIVA Team while Meyer earned the honor for the first time. Additionally, Van Buren was tabbed a Preseason First Team All-American by Off the Block.

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Tickets for Loyola Chicago's home matches are on sale now! Adult tickets are priced at $10. Youth (ages 4-14) and faculty/staff tickets are available for $7. Groups can purchase tickets at a reduced rate. These group tickets need to be purchased in advance. You can arrange your group outing by calling 773-508-WOLF. Click here to purchase.