Wichita State volleyball holds off Loyola, stays atop MVC

Wichita State and Loyola played four times before Saturday and the Shockers won all four, three by sweep.

Things just got a lot more interesting.

If Saturday is the first act in an infant Missouri Valley Conference rivalry, mark Nov. 13 and prepare for a rematch in Chicago. WSU took over sole possession of first place in the MVC with a 3-2 (25-20, 25-17, 20-25, 23-25, 16-14) win over Loyola.

The Ramblers made the Shockers nervous over and over again by rallying from a 2-0 deficit, after switching to the 6-2, and serving for the match up 14-13 in the fifth set.

“They got some juice and they ran with it,” WSU coach Chris Lamb said. “Once they got it going, they showed you why they are who they are, tied for first place up until about 20 minutes ago.”

Wichita State (16-6, 7-1 MVC) also showed what it is about in many different ways.

Jody Larson, back to her preferred role on the right, led WSU with 15 kills and added 13 digs. Freshman left Shimen Fayad had 12 kills, four in the fifth set, and the final two of the match. Libero Dani Mostrom had 21 digs to lead a scrappy back-row effort that held Loyola (17-4, 6-2) to a .186 attack percentage.

“There are ways to win when you get outscored,” Lamb said. “That’s taking care of the ball. That’s winning the serve-and-pass game. That’s playing a little bit cleaner. We were cleaner.”

WSU survived thanks to a 3-0 run by Larson and Fayad to end the fifth set. The Shockers trailed 14-13 after a service error by Mikaela Raudsepp. Larson’s tip tied the set. Fayad’s kill gave them a 15-14 lead. After a Loyola timeout, Fayad hammered in an out-of-system ball for the win.

“I don’t think these girls press,” Lamb said. “When that ball started bouncing around … a lot of teams look at that and chip it over. Shimen got up and hit that. You’ve got to take a shot when you get it and she did.”

Morgan Reardon led Loyola with 18 kills, nine in the third set after switching to a two-setter rotation. That move also benefited right-side Brittany Brown, who didn’t play in the first two sets and finished with 11 kills

“We switched systems and our young players responded real well,” Loyola coach Chris Muscat said. “We are fortunate enough to have two very good right-sides who play very different styles. Brit came in and did an excellent job.”

The Shockers stuck with the 6-2, a system they played for the first time in Friday’s sweep of Bradley. Emily Hiebert finished with 31 assists and McKenzie Fyfe with 19 and Lamb liked the production from both of his setters.

“(Fyfe) plays with more passion than anybody else and to be next to that, after I get a kill from her, is the greatest thing on earth,” middle Katie Reilly said. “She’s a great setter and she brings a lot of energy to the court.”

Wichita State ended the first set with a 6-0 run to win 25-20. Middle Abbie Lehman started the burst with a kill on a bad pass by the Ramblers. Larson followed with a kill to force a Loyola timeout.

Lehman’s block on Maureen Carls gave WSU a 22-20 lead. Larson tipped over a double-block and followed with an ace off the arms of Amanda Cushen for a 24-20 lead. Fayad ended the set with a kill.

The Shockers hit .333 in the first set, led by Larson’s four kills on six swings. Loyola finished with nine kills and eight errors.

WSU’s defense continued to frustrate the Ramblers in the second set, holding them to a .030 attack percentage. The Shockers pulled away midway through the match by building an 18-11 lead.

The Ramblers cut the gap to 20-16 before WSU finished the match on a 5-1 run. Reilly had four kills on six swings and three digs in the set.

Loyola limited its errors to four in the third set and rode that efficiency to a 25-20 win. It hit .417 with 19 kills on 36 attempts with Reardon recording nine kills. Loyola won the fourth set with Brown contributing seven kills. The Ramblers held WSU to a .137 attack percentage.

This story was originally published October 17, 2015 at 10:55 PM with the headline "Wichita State volleyball holds off Loyola, stays atop MVC."