CHICAGO – No. 8 Loyola Chicago continued its six-match homestand with a dominate 3-0 sweep over Saint Francis (Pa.) on Friday, Jan. 17 inside Gentile Arena. Backed by Alex Smits Van Oyen, who made his Loyola debut tonight, Parker Van Buren and Daniel Fabikovic, the Ramblers put away a swift sweep of The Red Flash, 25-13, 25-14, 25-15.  

"Tonight was a great win for our program. St. Francis is always a tough match. I think they're a gritty team and I think they play really hard. They run a fast offense, and I thought we did a good job of sticking to our scout report and executing at a high level on both sides of the ball, which is something that we needed to focus on, especially on the block side. I'm happy with the win, and happy that Alex got his first opportunity to run the show as well," said head coach Shane Davis.  

How It Happened  
Set One: Loyola wasted no time establishing control and an exciting atmosphere as Daniel Fabikovic opened the match with an ace, setting the stage for an 8-3 lead fueled by back-to-back kills from Brad Bell. A pair of 5-0 scoring runs, which featured kills from Jake Read, Van Buren and Nicodemus Meyer, widened the gap to 18-7. Saint Francis struggled with ball returns, providing Loyola ample opportunities to capitalize. The Ramblers closed out the set, 25-13, on an ace by Read and an attacking error by The Red Flash.  

Set Two: The Ramblers' dominance continued into the second set as Van Buren ignited a 10-0 scoring run with a wide-open kill. Loyola built an 11-point lead midway through the set, with key contributions from Fabikovic and Read, who tied his season-high with five kills. Newcomer Smits Van Oyen made his debut in the Maroon and Gold, recording nine assists during the set. Despite a pair of late kills from Saint Francis' Nicholas Lynch, Loyola locked down the set, 25-14, with a block by Van Buren and Meyer. Read notched three aces and Van Buren tallied 9.5 points in the second set. 

Set Three: Saint Francis started off the third and final set by claiming a 2-1 lead with kills from Michael Mosbacher and Kyle Charles. However, Loyola quickly regained momentum with a 4-0 scoring run led by Van Buren and Bell. Another streak extended the lead to 19-11, featuring contributions from Fabikovic and Meyer. The Ramblers sealed the match, 25-15, with back-to-back aces from Van Buren to complete the clean sweep. Van Buren capped his night with 16.5 points, 12 kills, and four aces. 

Inside the Box Score 

• Smits Van Oyen completed his Loyola debut and first career start with 27 assists.  
• Read led the first set with three kills and four points; he marked a season-high four aces against Saint Francis. 
• Loyola hit .508 as a team against Saint Francis and were near perfect in their reception (.966). 
• The Ramblers acted swiftly, completeing the sweep in just 75 minutes.  
• Davis is now 267-88 at the helm of the program.  

Up Next 
Loyola is back at home tomorrow night, Saturday, Jan. 18, against Rockhurst at 7 p.m.