Army West Point Athletics
Army West Point
13-13, 8-5PL
Loyola Maryland
2-24, 0-13PL
Volleyball Sweeps Loyola to Win Third Straight Match
November 07, 2014 | Volleyball
The win pushes Army to 8-5 in Patriot League play and 13-13 on the season, while Loyola drops to 2-24 overall and 0-13 in the conference.
"Tonight was a great win for our team," head coach Alma Kovaci said. "We are playing together and getting better every time we step on the court. We are playing in the present and that is where we need to be right now. We are focusing on taking it one point, one set and one match at a time and if we continue that trend we will be in great shape."
The home team held a 17-15 lead in the initial set before Army stormed in front with five consecutive points to secure a 20-17 advantage. Three Loyola miscues and two of Nicole Perri's 12 kills contributed to the run of five straight Army points. Loyola scored a point to briefly stop the run, but Army responded another five point outburst to finish the set with 10 of the last 11 points.
Army broke a 4-4 tie in the second set with consecutive points by Carolyn Bockrath, who led Army with 13 kills, and a Janaya Simmons service ace. The Black Knights never looked back and built a 15-9 advantage after back-to-back kills by Amber Clay and Avery Alexander. The lead stretched to 17-10 before Army's 7-2 run ended when Loyola's Molly Cichosz put down one of her team-leading 12 kills. Up 21-17 moments later, the Black Knights closed the set with the final four points to win 25-17 on Jaden Pickell's ace.
The third set was tightly contested through the first 30 points and Army went ahead 16-14 on Perri's spike. An ace by Alexander pushed the Black Knights' advantage to three and Loyola eventually called timeout when Army grabbed a 19-15 advantage. Army never relinquished its three-point lead and sealed the match with the 25-21 triumph.
Army is back in action on Saturday at 4 p.m. when it challenges Patriot League frontrunner American in Washington, D.C.
