The weekend of Oct. 13 and 14 proved to be another good weekend for the Hounds volleyball team with two decisive victories over Bucknell and Colgate.

The Hounds began their successful weekend with a Saturday game against Bucknell University. Initially, the team had a slow start. The first set resulted in a Hounds loss, 12-25. A slow start couldn’t stop the Hounds, though.

They went on to take care of the next three games, 25-16, 25-21 and 25-11, and close out the game in four. What made the difference for the Hounds in the next three games was smart, controlled volleyball.

In the last three games, the Hounds only made 11 hitting errors and kept their team hitting percentage at an impressive .346. Ann Ernst, ‘20, led the team in kills with 16, followed by Haley Puddy, ‘19,  with 12 and then Abby Hamilton, ‘22, with 10. Katie Forsythe, ‘22, led the Hounds with 24 digs, followed by Ernst who added 18. After the first game, the Hounds played immaculately, and the score reflects their level of play.

After the great win against Bucknell, the Hounds came ready to play against Colgate University on Sunday. Unlike the game the previous day, the team started off strong and was able to finish the match in three sets with scores of 25-20, 25-23 and 25-20.

Throughout the game, the Hounds played at a steady level. Overall, the Hounds had a .244 hitting percentage with a grand total of 47 kills. Just as she did on Saturday, Ernst led the team in kills with 15, followed by Puddy with 14. Cat Vaccaro, ‘22, added six kills as well.

Unbelievable performances by Forsythe and Ernst led them to sweep Patriot League honors for the second week in a row. Forsythe earned Rookie of the Week honors with her two 20+ dig performances. Ernst earned Player of the Week honors by leading the team in kills for both games.

With this undefeated weekend under their belt, the Hounds volleyball team improves to 5-3 in Patriot League play with a four game winning streak. This record moves Loyola volleyball to be tied for third in the league with Lehigh.

Playing Bucknell and Colgate also means the first round of Patriot League is over. With the weekend of Oct. 19 and 20, the Hounds start the second round of Patriot League with games against Lafayette and Lehigh.

Feature Image: Courtesy of Craig Chase