Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 The top-seeded Wolf Pack split a pair of matches on Friday, and they'll face No. 2 seed William Carey on Saturday at 10 a.m. in the semifinal.
MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The Loyola Wolf Pack women's volleyball team is set to play in the SSAC Championship Semifinals after playing a pair of matches Friday. The Pack earned a 3-0 victory over Brewton-Parker early in the afternoon before falling in a close five-setter with Mobile 3-2.
With two wins in pool play, the No. 1-seeded Loyola finished second in Pool A and will now take on the winners of Pool B, No. 2 seed William Carey, in a 10 a.m. semifinal match. The Wolf Pack split the season series with the Lady Crusaders, with each team winning the road game. Both matches went at least four sets.
In the event of a Wolf Pack semifinal win, the Championship match against the winner of Mobile and Blue Mountain would be played at 2 p.m.
Loyola 3, Brewton-Parker 0 (25-14, 25-16, 25-9)
Brittany Cooper started the day off with an ace, setting the tone for what would be a great service game for the Wolf Pack. Loyola would serve nine aces in the match, seven of which came in the opening frame, with Cooper, Emily Sheperis, Kailyn O'Neal, and Dallis Brown all getting points that way. Brewton-Parker actually kept things close to begin Set 1, as the score was 10-8 before Loyola scored 10 in a row on Cooper's serve. The Pack would run away with the first set, 25-14.
The Lady Barons would score the first two points of Set 2, but Loyola quickly took control, scoring the next six with kills from Sheperis and Alicia Simmons. The Wolf Pack never trailed again in the frame, eventually winning 25-16.
Brewton-Parker held an early lead in Set 3, but once again the set belonged to Loyola. An 11-0 scoring run late in the period gave Loyola a huge lead at 24-8, and a kill from Simone Tyson, her 12th of the match, clinched the match for the top seed.
Mobile 3, Loyola 2 (13-25, 25-21, 25-23, 17-25, 15-11)
Loyola came out strong in the first set, racing out to a 14-4 lead. Jordan Bernard led the team with four kills in the frame, including the final kill of the set which allowed Loyola to go up 1-0 in the match.
Mobile adjusted well following a mostly one-sided opening set, with the Rams winning the following two periods. Set 3 could have gone either way, as the Wolf Pack tied it 23-23, but back-to-back attacking errors gave Mobile the 2-1 match advantage.
Momentum went back to the Wolf Pack in Set 4, as a few attack errors by the Rams and a kill from Alicia Simmons gave Loyola a 4-0 early lead. The Pack had scoring runs of four, five, and six straight points to comfortably take the set and tie the match at 2-2.
Loyola jumped out to a lead early in the deciding set, with four Emily Sheperis kills and a Brittany Cooper ace allowing the Pack to hold a 5-2 advantage early. Mobile responded well, however, scoring seven-straight points to re-capture the lead. Loyola couldn't regain their footing in the set as Mobile went on to win it, coming out on top of Pool A.
"These tournament days are tough, and it takes a lot to be mentally and physically prepared for every match. We went into the Brewton-Parker match with confidence, but it took us some time to really find and stay in a rhythm. We also started off the Mobile match really strong. Mobile made some great adjustments, but our group continued to fight through the match. A few less errors on our part and it would've been a different match. Simone Tyson and Preslie Boswell found a lot of efficiency against Brewton, and Emily Sheperis showed up big against Mobile. Gracie and Kailyn continued sharing the load of setting the ball and made some great plays on defense during the Mobile match. We're glad that tomorrow is guaranteed either way and we're excited to continue competing for a tournament championship."
Pack Facts
Simone Tyson was the only player with double-digit kills for both matches: 12 against Brewton-Parker and 13 against Mobile.
The SSAC Player of the Year, Tyson also picked up her team-leading 11th double-double in the Mobile match. In addition to 13 kills, she also had 14 digs and two blocks.
The Wolf Pack had two more double-doubles in the five-setter. Gracie Bailey recorded 25 assists and 17 digs, while Kailyn O'Neal had 20 assists and 18 digs. For O'Neal, it was her 10th double-double this season, while it was Bailey's ninth.
Brittany Cooper served a total of eight aces between Friday's two matches. She has 55 total service aces this season, which ranks 16th in the NAIA.
Emily Sheperis threw a block party on Friday: five blocks against the Brewton-Parker and six against Mobile.
Simone Moreau registered double-figure digs in both matches: 13 against Brewton-Parker and 12 against Mobile.
2021 SSAC Volleyball Championship Schedule
Pool Play Day 1 | Nov. 11
Court 1 | Pool A
11:00 | No. 1 Loyola 3, No. 5 Faulkner 0
1:30 | No. 4 Mobile 3, No. 8 Brewton-Parker 0
Court 2 | Pool B
11:00 | No. 2 William Carey 3, No. 6 Talladega 0
1:30 | No. 3 Blue Mountain 3, No. 7 Middle Georgia 0
Pool Play Day 2 | Nov. 12
Court 1 | Pool A
10:00 | No. 4 Mobile 3, No. 5 Faulkner 1
12:30 | No. 1 Loyola 3, No. 8 Brewton-Parker 0
3:00 | No. 5 Faulkner 3, No. 8 Brewton-Parker 0
5:00 | No. 4 Mobile 3, No. 1 Loyola 2
Court 2 | Pool B
10:00 | No. 3 Blue Mountain 3, No. 6 Talladega 0
12:30 | No. 2 William Carey 3, No. 7 Middle Georgia 0
3:00 | No. 7 Middle Georgia 3, No. 6 Talladega 1
5:00 | No. 2 William Carey 3, No. 3 Blue Mountain 0
Semifinals & Championship | Nov. 13
10:00 | Mobile v. Blue Mountain
10:00 | Loyola v. William Carey
2:00 | Championship
You can keep up with the Pack by following Wolf Pack Athletics on Facebook at Facebook.com/LoyolaWolfPack, Twitter and Instagram @LoyolaWolfPack, and by checking out our website at LoyolaWolfPack.com.
