Among the Lions celebrating a point in a recent match are Bo Culo (6), Emma Boehle (15) and Megan Rice (10). The Lions host WCC leaders BYU and San Diego this week. (LMU Athletics)
Loyola Marymount University women’s volleyball squad survived a late challenge Oct. 19 to defeat Pacific three sets to two and come home from its Northern California trip with a West Coast Conference sweep.
LMU’s win followed a 3-2 win over St. Mary’s, and made the Lions’ record 12-8 overall, 6-2 in WCC play as they prepare for two key conference matches at Gersten Pavilion this week. The results:
Oct. 17 at St. Mary’s: The Lions rallied from a 2-1 sets deficit, dominating the final two sets to pull out a 24-26, 25-19, 23-25, 25-9, 15-12 triumph. Megan Rice continued her strong play with 24 kills (plus six blocks) and Savannah Slattery added 19, while Tess Reid approached her season-high with 54 assists, Bo Culo had 13 digs and Jessie Prichard smacked five service aces.
Oct. 19 at Pacific: The Lions’ 25-17, 25-23, 17-25, 25-27, 15-12 victory over the Tigers was a battle to the end, after LMU led 2-0. Slattery and Rice each had 14 kills and freshman Piper Manross a career-high 13, Culo had 22 digs and Reid had 46 assists (100 for the weekend).
This week: The Lions are back in Gersten Pavilion to face the WCC’s top teams, second-place BYU on Oct. 24 (7 p.m.) and first-placeSan Diego on Oct. 26 (noon).
BYU (which beat the Lions 3-2 on Oct. 1 at Provo) is 16-3 overall, 7-1 in WCC, and was beaten last Friday at home by San Diego, 15-4 overall and 8-0 in conference. The Toreros, who will host LMU in the Nov. 26 regular season finale, have won 13 straight and feature former Marymount HS star Grace Frohling, a 6-foot-5 freshman who helped the lead win over BYU.