Nov. 5, 2009

Box Score | Photo Gallery

LOS ANGELES, Calif. - LMU (11-13, 2-8) won the last two sets of a match against Gonzaga (9-14, 4-5) on Thursday night en route to earning a 24-26, 25-9, 17-25, 25-23, 15-10 victory over the Bulldogs in Gersten Pavilion.

The Lions, who hit .294 as a team, were led by freshman Alaina Bergsma with a career-high 32 kills. The native of Chandler, Ariz. hit .268 over the course of the five sets, teaming the kills with two service aces, 17 digs and a block solo for a double-double. Joining Bergsma with double-doubles on Thursday were sophomores Ariana Covington (11 kills and 16 digs) and Alesha Young (51 assists and 10 digs). Covington also posted three service aces in the victory, with all three coming down the stretch in the deciding fifth set. Juniors Becky Stehling and Megan Nash played extremely well for LMU, as Stehling hit .435 with 13 kills, three service aces, three block solos and one block assist. Nash, a local product from Manhattan Beach, Calif., posted a .421 hitting percentage with 10 kills and two block solos.

Michelle Boevers led the Gonzaga attack with 16 kills on 37 swings for a .351 hitting percentage. Layne Brosky finished second on the team with 10 kills. Kelsey Bashaw and Denise Van de Mortel split time at the setter position, with Bashaw passing-out 25 assists to Van de Mortel's 19 to the tune of a .241 team hitting percentage. Gonzaga was aggressive on the block, sending upwards of three blockers on various Lion attacks. The tactic seemed fairly successful as the Bulldogs collected 10 total team blocks, including a block solo and five block assists from Kaprina Goodwin.

The first set proved to be a battle as the teams traded blows throughout. Bergsma led all players with six kills, but the Lions fell in the set by a count of 26-24. The Lions posted 23 of their 78 team digs in the first set alone, led by six apiece from Covington and libero Felicia Arriola. Boevers boasted five kills for Gonzaga, while Caitlin Cozad and Emily Johnson each contributed service aces. The Bulldogs also teamed for three blocks in the set en route to the victory. After playing even to 23, a Kenna Crouse attack error handed Gonzaga a set-point opportunity. The Lions once again evened the tally, one of 15 tie scores in a period that also saw nine lead changes, before kills from Johnson and Bashaw put the set away for good.

The second set was all LMU, as the Lions roared to a 25-9 victory in the period. The nine points were the fewest the Lions have allowed in a set to 25 since holding Cal State Bakersfield to just nine last year on September 26. Gonzaga hit .000 as a team, as Bashaw was the only Bulldog with two kills. The Lions made it even tougher on the Bulldog attack, collecting five team blocks, highlighted by two block solos from Nash. Bergsma, who finished every set with at least six kills, posted another six on nine swings in the second. Stehling pitched-in her three service aces as the Lions ran away with the set from the beginning. The Lions hit .429 as a team, including three kills on as many attacks from Stehling. The two teams played to a tie at two before LMU exploded to open-up a 10-3 lead on a Bergsma swing. That lead advanced to 20-9 before LMU scored the final five points, including two kills from Bergsma and one each from Crouse, Covington and Nash, to keep Gonzaga in single-digits on the period.

Gonzaga was back to business in the third set, earning a 25-17 victory in the frame. Three kills from Brosky and Goodwin helped the Bulldogs to a .423 team hitting percentage. Eight kills on 16 attacks from Bergsma were not enough as the rest of the Lions managed just five combined. After failing to record a block in the second, Gonzaga returned to the task at hand, collecting three more in the third. The Bulldogs never trailed in the set, and after playing even with the Lions to 10 points, Gonzaga opened-up a 17-10 lead, highlighted by a pair of Brosky kills and two Lion attack errors. The visitors advanced the lead to 21-13 en route to taking a set-point lead at 24-16. After LMU spoiled one set-point on a Bergsma swing, Boevers found the floor for the 25th and final point.

Facing possible defeat headed into the fourth set, LMU won a hard-fought battle in the period, 25-23. Much like the first, the two teams played to 15 tie scores and seven lead changes before LMU was able to knot the match score at two sets apiece. A balanced attack of six kills from Bergsma, five from Stehling and four from Covington proved just enough to overcome five kills from Brosky and three more Bulldog blocks. Tied at 21, LMU scored two unanswered points on a Bergsma service ace and a ball-handling error charged to the Bulldogs. After Brosky found the floor to cut the deficit to one point at 23-22, LMU elected to take its first timeout. The break served its purpose as the Lions claimed the first point out of the huddle to take a 24-22 set-point lead. Goodwin spoiled the first Lion attempt at the set victory with a kill before Covington responded for one of her own to send the match into a fifth period.

Despite what could be considered a close score at 15-10, LMU seemed in control of the race to 15 points in set five. Bergsma collected six more kills on 11 attacks to lead the way, aided by three Covington service aces. Tied at four points apiece, LMU began to run away a bit, earning a 7-4 lead on Covington's first service ace, forcing a Gonzaga timeout. The break did little to slow momentum as LMU continued to run to an 11-4 lead, capping a streak of seven unanswered points for the Lions. LMU moved the tally to match-point at 14-9 before fittingly earning the victory on a Bergsma kill.

The Lions return to action on Saturday at 1 p.m. when they welcome Portland to Gersten Pavilion for West Coast Conference action.