Sept. 6, 2002

Final Stats

Los Angeles, Calif. - The Loyola Marymount University volleyball team pulled out a hard-fought victory over the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the nightcap of the opening session of the LMU Volleyball Classic. In their first four-game match of the season, the Lions moved to 3-1, while the Irish tasted defeat for the first time.

Senior Kristen Gallup extended her West Coast Conference leading kills per game average with a match-high 26. The All-WCC performer also had 15 digs. Freshman Michelle Look saw her first extended action of the season and came up with 12 kills.

Fellow freshman Nicole Ridley played throughout the match, dishing out a career-high 44 assists, along with nine digs. Junior Kea Kimball had 12 digs and five blocks including four solos.

With Dina DeBernardi serving six consecutive points, the Lions opened up an 11-4 lead early in the fourth and deciding game. LMU extended their advantage to 18-11, before the Irish were able to claw their way back in the game. But with the score 26-21, the Lions scored four of the next seven points to claim the victory.

LMU never trailed in the third game, controlling the action throughout. At 29-23, following a Lion timeout, the Irish committed a service error handing the game to LMU.

The Lions opened up a double-digit lead in the second game at 16-6 following a pair of Gallup kills. LMU continued to dominate and pushed its lead to 26-12 on a Dina DeBernardi ace. The Lions cruised to the 30-16 victory. LMU bounced back from a tough first game hitting an impressive .324 as a team, holding the Irish to .000.

With the opening game was tied at 21, the Irish (3-1) opened a 27-22 advantage before the Lions were able to climb back within two. Notre Dame held on to win the first game 30-26. Gallup posted a game-high six kills in the stanza. The Irish out hit LMU by a .222 to .071 advantage.

The Lions will be back in action at noon on Saturday when the take on Saint Louis. LMU will conclude the Classic with a 7 p.m. date with Colorado.