Lehigh uses all-around team effort to sweep Loyola on the road

Tuesday, October 15

Baltimore, MD

7:00 PM

Lehigh University

10-11, 3-4PL

Loyola (MD)

10-10, 3-3PL

Lehigh

Loyola Maryland

Photo by: Josh Liddick

Lehigh uses all-around team effort to sweep Loyola on the road

10/15/2019 10:40:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

Mountain Hawks claim 17th straight victory over Greyhounds dating back to 2003

BALTIMORE — The gameplan was simple for the Lehigh volleyball team on Tuesday night. A win was what the Mountain Hawks needed and a dominant win was what they got. Lehigh swept Loyola Maryland at Reitz Arena, 27-25, 25-21, 25-18 to snap its four-match losing streak and improve to 10-11 overall, 3-4 in the Patriot League. The win is Lehigh's 17th straight against Loyola dating back to 2003.

It was a dominant effort from the beginning, despite Lehigh trailing 15-11 heading into the media timeout. The Mountain Hawks found themselves trailing 21-15 before they went on a 6-1 surge to make it 22-21, causing Loyola to call a timeout. Down 23-21, Lehigh took two points to tie it at 23 following a Victoria Hemsath kill and then with Loyola at match point, 25-24, the Mountain Hawks won three straight points to close out the set and get the 27-25 comeback victory.

SET. WIN. Lehigh finally gets the monkey off its back and storms allll the way back for the first set victory, 27-25 over Loyola. Julia Pressly leads with four kills so far. Watch: https://t.co/B7Q1VWC0pu. #GoLehigh pic.twitter.com/S2DNz3RUQb
— Lehigh Volleyball (@LehighVBall) October 15, 2019

The Mountain Hawks went back-and-forth with Loyola in the second set of the match before they took over down the stretch. After Loyola starting coming back in the set and a subsequent Lehigh timeout, the Mountain Hawks won the final three points to come away with a 25-21 set victory and go up a commanding 2-0 in the match.

Two: Definitely better than one. Lehigh takes the second set, 25-21 over Loyola and takes a commanding 2-0 lead in this match. Kill leaders: Wright (6), Pressly (5), Lancaster (4), Poole (3). Watch: https://t.co/B7Q1VWC0pu. #GoLehigh pic.twitter.com/HAYoRBgL8t
— Lehigh Volleyball (@LehighVBall) October 16, 2019

Trailing 10-8 in the third, Lehigh won four straight points capped off by an Emily Poole kill to make it 12-10. Lehigh won three of the next four points to lead 15-11 at the media timeout. The final two kills of the match were won on kills by Sabrina Lancaster and Emily Poole as Lehigh held on for the 25-18 set win and the match, 3-0. After dropping 12 consecutive sets dating back to Sept. 28 at Bucknell, Lehigh finally found fortune on Tuesday, winning three straight sets to come away with the much-needed victory.

BALLGAME. Lehigh sweeps its way to a 3-0 victory over Loyola to snap its four-match losing streak. What a match on the road. #GoLehigh pic.twitter.com/R2FA8GFJZR
— Lehigh Volleyball (@LehighVBall) October 16, 2019

"Everyone was in it for sure this evening," said head coach Alexa Keckler. "There was some passion, some intensity, we got off a couple big blocks which set the tone for the entire match. Our blocking lit a fire under us. I'm really proud of their efforts and the way they played together tonight. Tonight was the night where all of the little pieces we've been focused on really came together."

Hannah Wright led the charge with 11 kills and nine digs, while Julia Pressly added 10 kills and hit .588 for the match. Hemsath poured in four kills off the bench in a gritty performance while Emily Poole had seven kills and six block assists. Alina Lam tallied a double-double with 19 assists and 11 digs, while libero Jess Donaldson had a career-high 20 digs.

"It absolutely was (a team effort). Our setters did an awesome job of moving our attackers around and spreading the offense which was really crucial this evening," said Keckler. "We had a lot of one-on-one opportunities and our players did an amazing job of moving on the floor. We did a lot of work on that this week, finding spots, finding more and doing our job to score. They took it to heart and it was awesome to see their hard work and effort pay off on the floor."

Despite hitting .182 in the first set and .089 in the second, the Mountain Hawks hit 447 in the third set with 18 kills and just one error. Lehigh also out-blocked Loyola 13-3 on the night with Poole and Bright leading the way defensively. The defense also held the Greyhounds to just a .093 attack percentage for the night, which proved to be the difference for Lehigh, who hit a combined .228.

The win pushes momentum back to the Lehigh side as the Mountain Hawks return to Grace Hall on Sunday at 1 p.m. against Holy Cross. That match will be streamed live on the Patriot League Network.

"I think this win is a huge confidence booster," Keckler said. "The last couple weekends we've been struggling finding that connection on the floor and making it work.

"Tonight, we found it and now that they have it under their belt, I honestly think it's going to be a great confidence booster going into Sunday. Whether we're home or away, a Patriot League win is a Patriot League win, so hopefully we're ready to go and we'll start from play one and finish our way through."

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Gallery: (10/15/2019) Lehigh Volleyball at Loyola 10-15-19