CHICAGO -- Loyola Chicago tallied a .333 attack percentage en route to a 3-2 victory against Bradley in front of a rowdy home crowd on Friday, Sept. 11. The Ramblers' offense was paced by sophomore Leyna Nguyen for the second night in a row with the match-high 27 kills on .447 hitting. Middle blockers Avary DeBlieck and Mallory Bohl each met double-digit kills as well, racking up 12 and 10, respectively.
On defense, both Sam Falk and Mya Ball reached double figures in digs and from the front row, Bohl contributed five blocks and sophomore Katie Scherer added five rejections.
Coach Quote: Amanda Berkley
"I'm really proud of the team. I think after yesterday we did a really good job of being able to manage the game plan, and also take some of the feedback that they got and apply it to today's match. Leyna [Nguyen] had an incredible match; some of the swings that she took were really impressive. That fifth set swing toward the end was pretty awesome. It was a baller move."
How It Happened
SET 1 | The Ramblers opened the match with a 25-20 first-set win thanks to a solid showing on the attacking end, hitting .320 as a unit with 12 kills in the stanza. Loyola's offense got a boost from three aces in the frame and rejected four Bradley attacks.
SET 2 | Loyola built on a set-one win by securing a dominant 25-15 victory in set two, leading from the first point on and its largest deficit at 10 points to close the set. The Ramblers registered 15 kills while only making two attack errors in the process, hitting .371 over the course of the set.
SET 3 | Bradley stayed alive with a 25-21 win in the third as Loyola trailed by as many as seven points before the Braves took the advantage for good at 20-19.
SET 4 | The Braves carried that momentum into the fourth frame, taking it 25-21 to force the deciding set. Despite a .324 attack percentage and 13 kills, Loyola couldn't hang on for a four-set win.
SET 5 | In a thrilling final set, the Ramblers hit their best (.385) and put up four blocks to seal their victory. Ball dished out nine assists in the finale and Nguyen had eight of the set's 11 kills.
Inside the Box Score
- Nguyen's 27 kills are a career-high, topping her 23 from the previous night.
- Junior Jae Fitting had the match-high four aces.
- Ball recorded a career-high 54 assists.
Up Next
Loyola closes out its home tournament against Alabama A&M on Saturday, Sept. 12 at 12 p.m.
