Dec. 2, 2005

Box Score

Salt Lake City, Utah - With the snow falling outside of Crimson Court, Loyola Marymount fell to host Utah 3-0 (30-10, 30-22, 30-20) in first round action of the 2005 NCAA Division I Volleyball Championships. The Lions (19-11) made their third straight NCAA appearance, but could not battle the Utes (23-8) on their home turf.

"We're a young team, and we played like it tonight," LMU Head Coach Steve Stratos said. "Utah served a lot tougher than we did, and we couldn't afford to not pass well against them. Our poor passing created situations where their blockers were just sitting there waiting for us."

The Utes out-blocked LMU 17.0 to 3.0 and tallied eight service aces.

Utah used six game one blocks to hold LMU to a negative team hitting percentage, as the Utes ran away with the 30-10 win. Christianna Reneau tallied three kills and three digs, but it was not enough to stop Utah's .500 attack percentage.

Led by Sandy Krone's five-for-nine offensive effort, LMU closed the gap in game two. Despite trailing 4-0 to start, Heather Hughes made it a two point game with her first kill of the night at 10-8. A five point mid-game rally extended the Utes' lead to 20-13, and Stratos took a timeout at 23-16. Jania Motton then pulled the Lions within four as late as 26-22, but Utah rallied off the next four to close game two at 30-22.

The Lions' hitting percentage dropped again in the third game, as LMU hit just .071. LMU did get a third-game boost from senior Krista Houseman, who entered the match to go 4-for-7 at the net. But Utah closed the match by taking game three 30-20.

Krone finished with seven kills to lead the Lions. Reneau finished with five kills and 13 digs. Hughes notched 17 assists and six kills.

The first round match marked LMU's 10th NCAA appearance and the Lions' third straight trip to the postseason. The Lions' 2005 season was highlighted by big wins over then-ninth-ranked Hawaii and 20th-ranked San Diego, and a midseason six-match winning streak.

Hughes (first-team) and Dina DeBernardi (honorable mention) garnered All-West Coast Conference honors, while Emily Day was named to the conference's all-freshman squad.

The Lions bid farewell to four seniors in DeBernardi, Houseman, Michelle Look, and Audrey Francis.

-GO LIONS-