CHICAGO — In a team effort with multiple career-highs, the No. 9 BYU men’s volleyball team (3-0) defeated No. 10 Loyola University Chicago 3-2 (19-25, 26-24, 25-27, 25-22, 15-13) in a five-set thriller at Gentile Arena on Thursday evening.
"I'm proud that our team collectively found a way to win," said BYU head coach Shawn Olmstead. "There were highs and lows tonight, and we told our players before the match that we were confident we would need every single person to play their part. Luke carried a load and got us out of some tough spots. Jon did what Jon does and steadied things out with that sub in sets four and five. In the end, they stayed in it and responded well after giving up a large lead in the third set."
Leading the offense, Luke Benson finished with a career-high 21 kills, along with six digs, four blocks and 39 attempts on a .333 clip. Benson also had four of BYU's five aces, tying his career-high. Kupono Browne recorded double-digit kills with 13, followed by Teon Taylor and Trent Moser with eight kills apiece.
The Cougars also found success on the defensive end, with libero Bernardo Adam recording a team-high and career-high of 15 digs combined with setter Noa Haine’s career-high of 14. The Cougars notched 47 digs to Loyola’s 33.
Set One
BYU would only lead during two instances in the first set at points 1-0 and 2-1. The Ramblers packed on points with a 4-0 run, taking a 5-2 lead. After a pair of BYU attack errors and back-to-back kills from Loyola’s Daniel Fabikovic, BYU took a timeout down five at 12-7. After the timeout, the Cougars scored five of the next seven points to cut Loyola’s lead down to two at 14-12, including a kill from both of BYU’s pin hitters Miks Ramanis and Browne.
The Cougars sought a comeback after a Benson ace towards the right corner, now down just one point at 18-17, forcing Loyola to take its first timeout of the set. Loyola went on a 5-0 run, taking the score to 22-17 after another BYU attack error.
The Ramblers closed out set one 25-19 after a block by Jimmy Meinhart.
Set Two
Trent Moser came off the bench for BYU early in the second set, giving BYU an edge after recording a block, taking the score to 6-6. Browne evened the score at nine with a kill, his third of the night. The Ramblers then scored back-to-back points off kills by Fabikovic and Parker Van Buren who went on to lead all players with 24 kills.
BYU found more momentum with a 4-0 run, featuring a Moser kill, Gavin Julien block and a Benson ace, giving the Cougars a 14-13 lead.
An attack error by Loyola's Van Buren pushed the score to 20-20, forcing Chicago to take its second and final timeout of the set. Benson registered his third ace of the night to give BYU a 22-21 advantage. Another attack error by Loyola gave BYU a set point at 25-24, and Benson’s seventh kill of the night would conclude set two which featured 14 ties, knotting the match at one set apiece.
Set Three
The Cougars jumped out to a quick 4-2 lead in set three courtesy of kills by Browne and Benson and a block by Julien. Loyola took a timeout down 13-9, BYU’s largest lead of the night so far. Benson followed by recording his fourth ace of the night for the Cougars to take a 14-9 lead.
Loyola fought back with a 16-10 run before taking its second lead of the set and earning a set point at 25-24. BYU fought off a Ramblers' set point before Loyola closed out the third set, 27-25 after a kill by Jake Read to lead two sets to one.
Set Four
Moser recorded his sixth kill of the night, to give BYU a 7-5 lead in the fourth set. The sophomore out of Gilbert, Arizona continued to be a spark off the bench for BYU, recording his first ace of the season to tie the set at 10 apiece.
After kills by Browne and Moser, the Cougars led 17-14, leading to a Loyola timeout. The Ramblers later tied the set at 18 after a kill by Miller Trubey off the bench. BYU then secured the next two points after a kill by Teon Taylor and Jon Stanley, his first of the season to give BYU a 20-18 advantage. After two set-points in a row for the Cougars, a Benson kill won the fourth set for BYU, 25-22, sending the match into a decisive fifth set.
Set Five
Browne tied set five at 6-6, with his 13th kill of the night. After a long rally, Loyola earned a two-point lead at 9-7. Stanley later recorded his second kill to draw BYU within one. Stanley then headed to the service line and teammates Taylor and Browne blocked Loyola's first swing of the play, knotting the set at 10 for the sixth tie of set five.
After ties at 12 and 13, Benson recorded back-to-back kills to secure a five-set victory, 15-13, winning the match 3-2.
Up Next
The Cougars remain on the road in Illinois and will face Lewis University on Saturday at 7 p.m. CST in Neil Carey Arena, with a live stream on Volleyball World's YouTube channel.