Loyola and Valparaiso Advance to Volleyball Semifinals

Horizon League Volleyball Scoreboard – Quarterfinals (Nov. 16)
(4) Loyola def. (5) Green Bay, 3-0 (25-21, 26-24, 25-17)
(3) Valparaiso def. (6) Youngstown State, 3-0 (25-19, 25-20, 25-20

Horizon League Volleyball Schedule  - Semifinals (Nov. 17)
4:00 p.m. ET – (4) Loyola vs. (1) Cleveland State
6:30 p.m. ET – (3) Valparaiso vs. (2) UIC

The seeds held true on the first day of the 2012 Horizon League Volleyball Tournament as third-seeded Valparaiso and fourth-seeded Loyola both won in 3-0 sweeps of their opponent.

Loyola will face top-seed and tournament host Cleveland State in Saturday’s first semifinal slated to begin at 4 p.m. ET. Valparaiso will face second-seed UIC in the second semifinal which will begin at 6:30 p.m. ET.

(4) Loyola 3, (5) Green Bay 0
Loyola dispatched Green Bay in straight sets in the first quarterfinal match on Friday night. The Ramblers were led by sophomore Laura Purcell, who had 15 kills on a .520 hitting percentage. Sophomore Brittany Brown was one dig short of a triple-double, finishing the match with 10 kills (.529 hitting percentage), 25 assists and nine digs.

The first set was back-and-forth as neither team could gain an advantage. The set was tied as late as 20-20 before Loyola won four consecutive points to take a 24-20 lead before ultimately winning the set 25-21.

The second set saw both teams go on runs as neither team could take control of the set. Green Bay jumped out to a 6-2 lead, but Loyola answered with an 11-4 run to take a 13-10 lead. The Phoenix scored the next four points to retake the lead and after the set stayed close. The set ended up having 11 ties and six lead changes before the Ramblers finally won the set, 26-24, to take a commanding 3-0 lead.

Loyola controlled the third set, scoring the first seven points - and 10 of the first 11 - to take a lead that Green Bay could never overcome. The Phoenix got as close as 19-15 late in the set, but the Ramblers scored six of the final eight points in the set to finish off the Phoenix.

Green Bay’s Brittany Groth finished with a team-high 15 digs as the All-Horizon League performer ends her career with 1,851 digs – the most in Phoenix history. Lyndsay Zabkowicz was the only Green Bay performer to record double-digit kills, finishing with 10.

Valparaiso 3, Youngstown State 0
Valparaiso advanced to the semifinals of the Horizon League Volleyball Tournament for the sixth consecutive season with a 3-0 sweep of Youngstown State in the second quarterfinal match on Friday night.

The Crusaders won the first set, 25-19, over the Penguins. Valpo had a 17-16 lead late in the set, but won four of the next five points to take a 21-17 lead and Youngstown State would never be able to get closer than three points the rest of the way. Mary Dent had six kills on eight attempts (.750 hitting percentage) to lead the Crusader attack in the set.

In the second set, Youngstown State was up 15-12 when Valpo went on a 7-1 run to take a 19-16 lead that they would never relinquish in winning the set 25-20.

In the final set, Valparaiso went on an 8-1 run to take a 9-3 lead and never allowed Youngstown State to take the lead again in the set. The Penguins closed within 18-17, but Valpo scored four consecutive points to take a 22-17 lead and squash any hopes of a Youngstown State comeback.

Valpo finished with three players in double-figures in kills, led by Ellen Vanden Berg with 13. Dent finished with 12 and Morgan Beil had 11 to help lead the balanced Crusader attack. Defensive Player of the Year Taylor Root finished with a team-high 16 digs to lead the Valpo defense.

Youngstown State was led by Shannon Watson who had 12 kills on a .478 hitting percentage. Erika West had a match-high 18 digs for YSU.