Loyola Volleyball closes out Big Sky Challenge Saturday

BUTTE, Mont. – The Wolf Pack stayed in Butte, Mont. on Saturday for the second day of the Big Sky Challenge. To start the day, Loyola took on a tough opponent in No. 21-ranked Montana Tech, which hosted the tournament. To end the weekend, the Maroon and Gold took on Montana State-Northern.
 

The Wolf Pack will return to The Den next weekend for its first home matches of the season in the Wolf Pack Welcome tournament, a four-match slate. The Loyola Volleyball team will host Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) for the home opener on Friday, August 23 at 3 p.m., followed by a match against No. 15 Montana Western at 7 p.m. 
 

#21 Montana Tech 3, Loyola 1 (25-22, 21-25, 25-21, 25-20)

With kills from Alexa Palmer, Amaya Bazemore, and Preslie Boswell, the Wolf Pack started off the match with a 7-5 first-set lead over the Orediggers. After five lead changes in the first set, Montana Tech managed to pull away with Loyola trailing by one, 22-21.
 

After a close first set, the Pack played a much stronger second set. Loyola strung together runs through the set, earning a four-point lead with Palmer and Bazemore kills and an ace from Ellie Connor, 14-10. Loyola did not lose the lead the rest of the set, leading by as many as six with Clarissa Dupree, Belén Puche Laguna, and Lily Clemmer-Gillum getting in on the action. An ace from Simone Moreau tied the match, securing Loyola's first set win of the season at 25-21.
 

Loyola held a lead for most of the first set with Montana Tech following closely, managing a tie at 14-14. From that point, the score remained close with six ties throughout the rest of the third set. With the set even at 21-21, the Orediggers scored the final four points to take the set, 25-21.
 

Montana Tech kept its momentum going into the fourth set, taking a quick lead. The Wolf Pack managed to chip away at the lead, getting the score within two, 20-18. However, Montana Tech earned the final points to secure the win, 25-20.
 

Montana State-Northern (27-25, 22-25, 25-16, 25-14)

Loyola was down 10-5 in the first but got the score within one with a Samantha Guillotte kill off an assist from Gabriella Masiello, 11-10. WIth the score tied at 16-all, Bazemore got a kill to put the Wolf Pack in the lead. From there, Loyola held the lead until MSU-Northern managed a tie at 23-23. The first set continued to be hard-fought with the match even at 25-25, but Northern found a way to score the last two points, earning a 27-25 win.
 

The Skylights carried their first-set momentum into the second set, but the Wolf Pack quickly responded by tying up the score, 8-8. When Northern got the score within one, 19-18, Emma Fahy, Dupree, Bazemore, and Boswell each found the floor, putting the Pack in position to take the second set, 25-22.
 

MSU-Northern had the edge in the third set, taking an early lead. The Maroon and Gold fought back to settle the score, 16-16. The Skylights, however, scored nine straight to close out the set. The Skylights pulled away early in the fourth set to win by double digits and take the match. 
 

Wolf Pack Head Coach Jesse Zabal

"We've talked since the beginning of our preseason training that this pre-conference schedule would be the toughest we've experienced, likely in program history. It is definitely frustrating to not earn any wins this weekend, but in the end, I believe we accomplished our goals: we tried some different lineups, we grew as a team, and we absolutely improved over the course of the weekend. I am very proud of how this group showed up for each other through each match and we see them continuing to take more ownership of the game, which is key when it comes down to those stressful, pressure-filled moments. Montana has been a great experience, but I know we are all excited to be back at home in The Den next weekend."
 

Pack Facts

• Amaya Bazemore tallied double-digit kills in both matches, with 11 against Montana Tech and 13 against MSU-Northern. Bazemore also totaled 15 blocks over the weekend, six of which came against Northern. 

• Alexa Palmer matched her career best with seven blocks against Montana Tech. Lily Clemmer-Gillum also finished with seven blocks, as she combined with Palmer for five of those. 

• Senior Preslie Boswell matched her career high with 15 kills in the first match on a .357 hitting percentage. She also notched seven kills, seven digs in the evening match. 

• Belén Puche Laguna became the first Wolf Pack player with a double-double this season, recording 13 assists and 13 digs in the first match of the day. 

• Ellie Connor led the Pack in assists in both matches, with 24 in the first and 17 in the second. She also had 12 digs against MSU-Northern for her first double-double 

• Gabriella Masiello, who started the MSU-Northern match, finished with 15 assists and nine digs in three sets. 

• Simone Moreau, who has averaged five digs per set so far this season, had 22 vs. Montana Tech and 19 vs MSU-Northern. 

• Kala Emanuelli posted double-digit digs in both matches Saturday, with 10 against Montana Tech and 13 against MSU-Northern. 
   

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