Flyers Spook Women’s Volleyball in Halloween Night Sweep

Loyola women’s volleyball was swept by the University of Dayton Oct. 31 in Gentile Arena. Second-year outside hitter Kate Maley led the charge for the Ramblers, tallying nine kills. Dayton’s third-year outside hitter Kamryn Hunt provided 16 kills for the Flyers. 

Dayton’s redshirt third-year outside hitter Kaitlyn McNeel grabbed the first two kills of the match. A block from the Flyers’ fourth-year setter Viktoria Wahlgren and fourth-year middle blocker Liana Sarkissian and a service ace from fourth-year defensive specialist Emily Young put Dayton up 6-1. 

The Flyers went on a 7-0 run consisting of kills from Hunt and Sarkissian and a service ace from Young. Second-year outside hitter Kaitlyn Burke grabbed the first kill for the Ramblers, which Hunt responded to with one for Dayton. 

Maley tabbed a block, which third-year middle blocker Avary DeBlieck followed up with one of her own. First-year setter Ava Hunter scored a service ace, which Dayton met with a kill from redshirt first-year outside hitter Corrie Anderson, making the score 14-5. 

First-year right side hitter Karli Molnau tallied a block and kill, followed by a net violation from the Flyers, prompting a Dayton timeout. A solo stuff from DeBlieck and a kill from first-year outside hitter Leyna Nguyen were met with kills from Hunt and Anderson. Fourth-year middle blocker Ann Marie Remmes and Molanu each tabbed kills, closing the gap to 17-14. 

McNeel added a block and kill for the Flyers, which Maley and Remmes combated with a block for the Ramblers. Hunt incited a 7-0 run for Loyola off a kill, featuring kills from Maley and Remmes and a block from Burke and DeBlieck. 

After being tied at 22, Dayton took the lead with a kill and service ace from Hunt. Maley tallied a kill, but with Dayton at set point, a kill from Sarkissian gave the Flyers set one with a final score of 25-23. 

A 6-1 run for the Flyers established Dayton’s momentum early in the second set. The run consisted of kills from Flyer redshirt first-year middle blocker Abigail Cresse, McNeel and Anderson, along with a service ace from Dayton’s fourth-year libero Karissa Kaminski. 

Back-to-back Flyer errors followed by a stuff from Remmes and a kill from Nguyen brought the Ramblers back with a score of 6-5. A kill from Hunt was followed by a Loyola attack error, which was negated by kills from Nguyen and Molnau. 

Consecutive service errors from both teams evened the momentum before Maley traded kills with Anderson and Molnau to bring the score within one. A kill from Nguyen had the set tied at 13 apiece. A block from Hunt and Sarkissian, followed by a Rambler attack error, gave the Flyers the advantage again. 

Sarkissian tallied three kills to Loyola’s one — courtesy of Remmes. Nguyen and Wahlgren swapped kills, which was preceded by a Rambler attack error. A block from Cresse and Anderson was met with a kill from DeBlieck, making the score 22-18. 

Hunt grabbed another kill, which was combated by DeBlieck and Molnau each tallying a kill. It wasn’t enough as a kill from McNeel gave the Fyers the set point, and an overpass kill by Wahlgren gave the second set to Dayton with a score of 25-21. 

A 13-2 run got the Flyers off to a fast start, with kills from Cresse, Sarkissian, Hunt and McNeel as well as lone Loyola kills from Molnau and Nguyen. A service error from Dayton was immediately met with a service error from Loyola. 

Anderson tabbed a kill, which Sarkissian followed with a service ace. Maley added a kill for Loyola before it was negated by a kill from Anderson and McNeel and a block from Cresse. A Rambler attack error was followed by a Cresse kill to give the Flyers match point. 

A Loyola service error closed out the match and allowed the Flyers to take the win with a final score in set three of 25-9. 

Head coach Amanda Berkley said Dayton is a very disciplined team, and the Ramblers need to be able to find a way to score. 

“I talk about trying to find the edges of the block or trying to score where they can’t dig,” Berkley said. “We are trying to find different spots or different ways to score with different swings.” 

The Ramblers take on The University of Rhode Island Nov. 7 at 6 p.m. in Gentile Arena. Streaming will be available on ESPN+.