The CSUN women’s volleyball team was defeated 3-2 at home by the Loyola Marymount University Lions in a five-set match on Saturday afternoon.
The Matadors took control of the game in the first set with a lead of 5-0. CSUN quickly dominated with a strong rally towards the end, leading to a 25-14 win.
In the second set, the Lions took the lead early, putting the score at 3-4. However, the Matadors competed to get the lead back up 12-10. LMU lost their momentum as CSUN gained the advantage, 20-16. The Lions then came back, tying the set 24-24. After a long rally, the Matadors came out on top with a leading score of 26-24, putting them at 2-0 before the second half of the game.
The third set was fought hard by the Matadors as the Lions shifted the entire momentum of the game, causing the Matadors to fall behind to 0-5 in the set. The Lions retained the lead piling on more points as the set progressed, leaving the score at 3-15. CSUN outside hitter Fallyn Blotzer assisted the Matadors’ fight with several powerful serves and points. CSUN middle blocker Iye Okolo also helped the Matadors stop LMU’s momentum with a strong hit towards the end of the set. However, the Lions came out on top, winning 25-11, shortening CSUN’s lead to 2-1.
The Matadors began the fourth set with a 2-0 lead. CSUN middle blocker Tatiana Turgeon kicked off with a very striking hit and block at the beginning of the set. Major contributions came from Blotzer and Okolo. The team led with a 20-15 score. LMU gained momentum toward the end and tied the game 24-24 CSUN outside hitter/opposite Audrey Nuckols blocked LMU, tying the set again at 25-25. The Lions won the set 27-25. The game was tied at 2-2.
During the deciding fifth set, the Lions took an early lead and scored the first point. The Matadors shortly challenged a call and won, tying the set 1-1. CSUN called multiple timeouts in order to potentially slow LMU’s momentum. Despite their fight, the Matadors were unable to pull through and lost the last set 9-15. This put LMU on top, winning the game 3-2.
“I think this game shows that we have it…we can start off and put a team back on their heels from the beginning and I think that’s something that we just need to capitalize on, this game just showed that we can bring it to the teams in the big west,” said CSUN senior libero Paige Sentes.
Although the Matadors came up short against the Lions, the team discovered they have what it takes to fight and compete against good teams. They intend to build on their positives from the loss and focus on winning their next match against UC Santa Barbara on Friday, Sep. 25, at 7 p.m.. The game will be located at the Thunderdome in Santa Barbara, California and will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
