MALIBU, Calif. – In front of a rowdy Ramblers road crowd, No. 7 Loyola Chicago extended its undefeated start to the season, to 7-0, after securing a gritty five-set victory over No. 10 Pepperdine (25-15, 25-23, 19-25, 29-31, 15-12) on Thursday, Jan. 30 at Firestone Fieldhouse. Parker Van Buren and Daniel Fabikovic mirrored each other with a team-high 19 kills apiece on 37 swings; Van Buren was hitting .459 while Fabikovic hit .324.
"It was great to see our team fight for the win tonight, especially given all of our service errors. We had a strong hitting and defensive performance, and I'm proud of this team tonight, and grateful to the fans. The fan base was amazing tonight, filled with friends, family and alums," said head coach Shane Davis. "We know what we need to focus on and correct before closing out this road trip."
How It Happened
Set One: With a loud contingent of Ramblers fans making their presence felt on the road, Loyola set the tone early, dominating the opening set behind powerful hitting from Jake Read and Brad Bell, who both hit .667 in the frame. A critical challenge midway through the set helped Loyola take control at 13-11, and Fabikovic delivered a pair of pinpoint kills to extend the lead, 18-13. The Ramblers rode their momentum to a decisive 25-15 set win, led by Van Buren's four kills, Ryan McElligott's 12 assists and the team's three service aces.
Set Two: The second set was a back-and-forth battle, featuring three lead changes and 16 tied scores. Loyola led early but found itself trailing, 9-12. Bell closed the gap, 10-12, with a clutch kill. Then late in the set, Read, competing against his brother, Pepperdine's Brendan Read, to tie the score, 22-22. With the set knotted up, Bell came up with a solo block to give Loyola set point, and Van Buren sealed it with a striking ace to put the Ramblers up, 2-0.
Set Three: Pepperdine bounced back with a strong third set, hitting .455. Barrington, Ill. native, Cole Hartke led the set for the Wave with five kills on a perfect 1.000 hitting percentage. Despite Loyola staying within striking distance after kills from Nicodemus Meyer and key assists from McElligott, Pepperdine controlled the latter half of the frame, taking the set 25-19 to force a fourth.
Set Four: The fourth set was an instant classic, with Loyola and Pepperdine exchanging blows in a marathon frame that saw multiple challenges, 13 lead changes, and three tied scores. Bell's no-look kill tied the set, 10-10, and Van Buren added his fourth ace of the night to bring Loyola within one at 9-10. A successful challenge from Davis overturned a late out-of-bounds call, putting the Ramblers one step closer at 23-24. Despite a 5-0 Ramblers run to even the score at 28-28, Pepperdine's Hartke delivered back-to-back kills to clinch the set, 31-29, and send the match to the fifth and final frame.
Set Five: In the deciding set, Loyola found its rhythm early, jumping out to a 5-3 lead after a strong defensive play by JJ Sowa that set up a kill for Jackson Reed. A tear-drop kill from Fabikovic put the Ramblers at match point, and Meyer stepped up to serve before Reed delivered the match-winning kill to close out the night.
Inside the Box Score
- Van Buren matched his season-high 19 kills against Pepperdine and added four service aces and a season/team-high 10 digs.
- McElligott set a season-high and matched his career-high 49 assists.
- The Ramblers hit .438 as a team and held the Wave to .262.
- The victory marks Loyola's first road win of the season, and the Ramblers second win over a ranked opponent.
Up Next
The Ramblers head south to La Jolla, Calif. to take on No. 15 UC San Diego on Saturday, Feb. 1 at 1:30 p.m. CT. The match will be streamed on ESPN+.
