Women’s Volleyball Tame Wildcats in Four Sets to Win Fourth Consecutive Conference Match

Loyola women’s volleyball traveled to take on Davidson College in Davidson, N.C. Oct. 17. In the four-set match, second-year outside hitter Kaitlyn Burke carried the offense for the Ramblers, tabbing 19 kills while Davidson’s third-year outside hitter Elena Garcia-Guerrios led the Wildcats with 16 kills. 

The first set started on a 6-2 run for Davidson consisting of kills from Davidson’s second-year middle blocker Cayla Weisner, second-year outside hitter Meile Songaila and fourth-year outside hitter Anna Withee. Third-year middle blocker Avary DeBlieck grabbed a lone kill for the Ramblers. 

Fourth-year middle blocker Ann Maire Remmes and Withee traded kills along with Davidson attack errors, bringing the score to 7-5 in favor of Davidson. Songaila increased the Wildcat lead with a kill followed by a service ace. 

First-year right side hitter Karli Molnau, Remmes and Burke each tallied a kill for the Ramblers but were negated by attack errors. Davidson’s fourth-year right side hitter Emma Slusser, Garcia-Guerrios and Withee scored a kill each for the Wildcats, giving them a 14-10 lead. 

Burke and Withee traded kills before the Ramblers went on a 4-1 run featuring kills from Burke and Remmes as well as Wildcat attack errors. The Rambler run prompted a 6-1 response from Davidson consisting of a kill from Songaila and three consecutive kills from Garcia-Guerrios making it 21-15. 

Garcia-Guerrios and DeBlieck traded kills to make the score 23-17 in favor of the Wildcats. An attack error from Molnau gave Davidson set point and a kill from Withee closed out the first set for the Wildcats with a final score of 25-17. 

Burke and Molnau traded kills with Weisner, Withee and Songaila to tie the second set at three. A kill from Remmes and a service ace from first-year outside hitter Leyna Nguyen along with Wildcat errors put the Ramblers up 7-5. 

Garcia-Guerrios and Molnau swapped kills which prompted a 4-0 run for the Wildcats, including kills from Songaila, Weisner and Garcia-Guerrios. A DeBlieck kill sparked momentum for the Ramblers, with Burke and Remmes adding kills for a 14-11 lead.

Despite a kill from second-year outside hitter Claire Van Den Herik, kills from Wildcat third-year middle blocker Mia Compas and Garcia-Guerrios tied the set at 15. Remmes tallied two more kills, which Slusser met with a kill. 

Third-year setter Emma Henry grabbed a kill for the Ramblers, and back-to-back blocks from Remmes and Henry kept the momentum with the Ramblers. DeBlieck tallied a kill which Davidson’s first-year outside hitter Ariyana Johnson combated with a kill for the Wildcats. 

A Burke kill gave the Ramblers set point. Despite a kill from Johnson, Burke ended the second set with a kill and a final score of 25-19. 

Weisner and Burke each tallied two kills to start the third set. DeBlieck and Remmes traded kills with Songaila and Compas to tie the set at four. 

Compas tabbed another kill which was met by a kill from DeBlieck as well as Wildcat attack errors. The Ramblers conceded attack errors and a kill from Weisner ended the mistakes from both sides to tie the set at eight. 

Burke and Van Den Herik brought some momentum to the Rambler side, each scoring a kill before triggering a 5-0 Wildcat run. The run included kills from Songaila and Garcia-Guerrios along with Rambler attack errors.

Burke answered for the Ramblers with three consecutive kills. Songaila tabbed a lone kill which was met with kills from Burke and Remmes to give the Ramblers an 18-14 lead. 

Kills from Johnson and Songaila gave the Wildcats some offensive energy. The Ramblers responded with kills from DeBlieck and Burke. Though Withee added another kill for the Wildcats, Molnau brought set point and Van Den Herik closed out the third set with a score of 25-20. 

Garcia-Guerrios and Compas started the offense for Davidson with a kill each, which was negated by Wildcat errors. A kill and service ace from Burke gave the Ramblers a 5-4 advantage. 

Remmes and Songaila traded kills. A Nguyen kill prompted a 4-0 Wildcat run including kills from Garcia-Guerrios and Withee. The Ramblers answered with a 6-1 run of their own including kills from Molnau, Henry and DeBlieck. Garcia-Guerrios scored the lone point for the Wildcats. 

Molnau and Burke kept the offense going with a kill each which second-year defensive specialist Jae Fitting followed with a service ace to give the Ramblers an 18-11 lead. 

Davidson’s first-year outside hitter Ellie Ocampo tallied consecutive kills along with a kill from Compas for the Wildcats. Van Den Herik and Fitting combated with kills for the Ramblers. Service errors from both sides leveled the momentum at 19-14. 

Garcia-Guerrios grabbed consecutive kills but a Nguyen kill gave Loyola match point. DeBlieck concluded the match with a kill and a final score of 25-19

Head coach Amanda Berkley said she was proud of the team’s grit and ability to work past tough defense. 

“​​Davidson is always a very scrappy team,” Berkley said. “It was very evident tonight with the libero [Hummel] having 33 digs. The Wildcats were able to frustrate our hitters, but I am proud of the turnaround we had after set one. [Burke] had another great hitting night along with our middles who played a very offensive match. Looking forward to another battle tomorrow.”

The Ramblers travel to Virginia Commonwealth University to take on the Rams Oct. 24 at 5 p.m.. Streaming will be available on ESPN+.