Wolf Pack claims first SSAC win Friday

NEW ORLEANS – After nearly two weeks off, the Loyola University New Orleans volleyball team returned to action on Friday, defeating the Faulkner Eagles in four sets (25-19, 27-25, 22-25, 25-17) in The Den for the Wolf Pack's first Southern States Athletic Conference win of the season. Loyola (1-2 in SSAC) will host Mobile (5-0) on Saturday at 1 p.m. for another league matchup. 
 

Faulkner got off to a nice start in the opening game, 6-1, but Loyola used back-to-back attacks by Preslie Boswell and Amaya Bazemore to help chip away at the deficit. Bazemore and Juliana Pacini notched consecutive kills after that to make it a 7-6 Eagles lead. The visitors pulled away again, 12-7, but again, the Wolf Pack fought back to take their first lead in the set, 13-12. Gabriella Masiello found a hole in Faulkner's defense on a setter dump, and an ace by Kala Emanuelli highlighted that 6-0 run. 
 

After the two teams went back and forth on a couple of points, the Wolf Pack took over on their way to the first-set win. Bazemore and Boswell each had two kills during a 7-0 run, 22-16, and an Ellie Conner service ace, as well as a setter dump, helped close things out. 
 

Thanks to a couple of attacks by Bazemore, another from Alexa Palmer, and an ace by Simone Moreau, Loyola started the second set with a 5-1 advantage. Consecutive points won off the arm of Samantha Guillotte made it a 7-3 lead, then kills by Boswell and Pacini helped keep it a five-point lead, 12-7 moments later. After Palmer recorded two kills, 15-9, the Eagles used a 7-1 run to tie the set, 16-16. Faulkner took a couple of leads until a Guillotte and Natalie Burkholder combined block made it a 21-20 Loyola lead. 
 

Facing a Faulkner match point, 25-24, Boswell tied it down the line, then a combined block for Pacini and Bazemore after a Faulkner error gave Loyola a 2-0 lead in the match. 
 

The Eagles took an early lead in the third set and maintained a sizable advantage, 13-6, until the Wolf Pack scored eight of the next nine points to tie it, 14-14. Palmer recorded three kills during that stretch, and Clarissa Dupree and Pacini also got in on the action. The Eagles pushed back ahead, though, and held on to win their first set of the match, 2-1. 
 

Palmer contributed a block and a kill to start the fourth set and then two attacks from Pacini helped give Loyola an 8-5 lead in the early going. After Faulkner cut it to one, Pacini's serve sparked a quick 4-0 run, 12-7, featuring an ace and a kill by Dupree. A couple of attacks found the floor for Bazemore, 16-10, and Boswell, Pacini and Masiello allowed Loyola to lead by eight, 21-13, late in the set. Pacini collected another kill and another ace, as Loyola cruised to victory from there. 
 

Wolf Pack Head Coach Jesse Zabal

"It feels really great to get that win under our belt. Our serving game was much more aggressive this match and that put us in a good position to win, especially in the 4th set. Alexa, Preslie, and Natalie did a great job staying efficient tonight and Clarissa came off the bench strong. We continue to see this group learn and grow through new challenges and we'll have to keep fighting our way through as the season progresses."
 

Pack Facts

• Juliana Pacini had a triumphant return to the court in her first match of the season. Pacini tied for a match high with 11 kills, adding seven digs and two aces. 

• Alexa Palmer also posted 11 kills, including the match winner, while hitting .375, her best mark of the season. 

• Loyola's right-side hitters combined for 20 kills Friday, as Preslie Boswell also had an efficient night with nine kills on a .350 hitting percentage. 

• Amaya Bazemore finished with nine kills and a team-high seven blocks. She's now at 298 blocks for her Loyola career, which ranks eighth in Loyola history. 

• Both setters played well, as Gabriella Masiello led with 20 assists while Ellie Connor had 18. 

• Simone Moreau added six assists in the match while collecting a team-high 15 digs.