Friday, September 25
7 p.m.
Lehigh University
8-8
3
vs
0
Loyola
5-11
1
2
3
F
Loyola
23
23
11
0
Lehigh
25
25
25
3
Lehigh bounces back with straight-set win over Loyola
9/25/2015 8:48:00 PM | Volleyball
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Lehigh volleyball team pulled out a pair of tight 25-23 victories in the first two sets against Loyola Friday night inside Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall before cruising to a 25-11 set-three win to capture a straight-set victory over the Greyhounds. The Mountain Hawks improve to 8-8 overall with the win and 1-1 in league play, while Loyola falls to 5-11 overall and 0-1 in the Patriot League.
"I thought we did a great job bouncing back from a tough result Wednesday," said head coach Bob Bertucci. "We immediately got back in the gym Thursday and got dialed in for practice and I thought that really showed today. Hopefully we can continue that the rest of the way."
Senior Leah Turner led the way for Lehigh with 12 kills and an outstanding .526 attack percentage. Sophomore Whitney Krantz and senior Stephanie Slater contributed nine kills apiece, while senior Ana Vrhel chipped in eight kills and six total blocks. Senior Amy Matula dished 36 assists and also led the squad with eight digs. The Mountain Hawks hit an impressive .422 for the match and limited Loyola to a clip of .179.
The Greyhounds took an early 10-6 lead in the opening set before a pair of kills from sophomore Kelly Bennett and a Matula spike tied the set at ten. Loyola then used a 4-1 run to take a 14-11 advantage and the Greyhounds held onto that lead until the Mountain Hawks used a 4-1 streak to turn a 15-14 deficit into an 18-16 lead. The score was tied at 19 and 21, but Lehigh scored four of the final six points, capped off by a Turner kill, to earn a 25-23 set-one victory.
Lehigh grabbed a 9-6 advantage to open the second set before the Greyhounds narrowed the advantage to 9-8. The Mountain Hawks responded with an 8-3 run that saw three kills from Krantz to take a commanding 17-11 lead. With Lehigh ahead 19-14 a few points later, Loyola rattled off six of the next seven points to quickly cut the Mountain Hawk edge to 22-20. Loyola was within one at 23-22, but a Greyhound service error and Turner kill secured a 25-23 set-two win and 2-0 match advantage.
The third and final set began in a 5-5 tie, but the Greyhounds wouldn't secure back-to-back points for the remainder of the match. The Mountain Hawks broke open a 12-8 lead with a 9-1 run to take a 21-9 advantage with the help of several blocks and kills from four different Mountain Hawks. A spike from junior Katie Jennison eventually secured match point at 25-11. Lehigh hit a match-high .522 during the final set.
The Mountain Hawks remain home to host Navy Saturday at 4 p.m. inside Leeman-Turner Arena at Grace Hall. Free video will be available on the Patriot League Network.
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Team Stats
LOYOLA
LEHIGH
Kills
34
47
Errors
19
12
Attempts
84
83
Hitting %
.179
.422
Points
44.0
60.0
Assists
32
42
Aces
4
4
Blocks
6.0
9.0
Game Leaders
Kills
12
Aces
1
Blocks
1
Kills
9
Aces
0
Blocks
0
Kills
9
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Players Mentioned
MB
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