Box Score

Tom Black won his 100th match as head coach of the LMU volleyball program on Thursday, guiding LMU (16-7, 7-4 WCC) to a five-set road victory over Saint Mary's (6-15, 1-10 WCC) by scores of 28-26, 21-25, 25-18, 19-25, 15-8. With the victory, LMU has now won seven of its last eight matches and is 6-3 in five-set matches this year.

Junior Jamie Lea led all players with 24 kills on 62 attacks, while sophomore Sarah Sponcil posted 21 kills while hitting .415 over 41 attacks with just four errors. Senior Hannah Tedrow dished out 53 assists as the Lions hit .281 as a team. LMU also served up five aces, receiving a lone ace from five different players, including Sponcil who added 13 digs for a double-double. LMU's blocking corps posted 8.5 team blocks, led by four block assists from Jennifer Casillas.

Lindsey Knudsen and Alexis Salmons led the way for Saint Mary's, with Knudsen registering 16 kills. Salmons hit .406 with 14 kills on 32 swings with just one error, teaming that mark with six block assists to help the Gaels to 12 total team blocks.

Sponcil registered seven kills in the first set, as LMU edged Saint Mary's, 28-26, in extra points. The native of Phoenix, Ariz. did not err on the attack, collecting the seven on 16 swings for a .438 hitting percentage. The two teams combined for seven service errors in the opener, with LMU committing four. Saint Mary's forced LMU into a pair of early timeouts, as the Lions were out of stops by 13-8. Fortunately, LMU made a run of its own out of that final timeout, drawing back even at 13 with five straight points. After trading blows virtually the entire way, the Lions faced a set-point deficit at 25-24 following a Salmons kill, but Sponcil and Lea responded with kills of their own to give LMU a similar chance. Although Salmons wasted that opportunity on the ensuing play, Rachelle Suaava and Tedrow connected for kills to claim the next two points, handing LMU the opening set.

After playing even to eight in the second set, Saint Mary's won five of the next six points, burning an LMU timeout and taking a 13-9 lead. While the Lions would never draw back even in the set, LMU did manage to cut the deficit to one at 13-12 on a Sponcil service ace. The Lions found themselves still just one point short of the Gaels at 22-21 when Sarah Chase erred on a serve, but kills from Payton Rund and Knudsen handed the home team a set-point chance at 24-21. The Gaels capped the 3-0 run to victory on the ensuing play as Lea committed an attack error that evened the match score at 1-1 following a 25-21 SMC victory.

LMU hit .469 in the third behind five kills apiece from Sponcil and Lea. Casillas provided a strong block in the third, posting two block assists. LMU never trailed in the third, jumping out to an early 3-1 lead on a kill from Casillas. Leading 9-7, LMU won six of the next seven to extend the lead to 15-8 on a SMC service error. Cruising down the stretch, LMU reached set-point on a Lea kill before Suaava served up an ace to complete the victory.

Refusing to surrender without a fight, Saint Mary's never trailed en route to claiming a 25-19 victory in the fourth to knot the match score at 2-2. Knudsen had five kills for the Gaels, as they jumped out to an early 9-3 lead. The Lions cut the deficit to two at 14-12, but Saint Mary's won the next seven straight to advance the lead to 21-12. LMU fought off a pair of set-point chances, but a service error from Avery Bush ultimately handed the Gaels the fourth-set win and forced a fifth and decisive period.

It was all LMU in the fifth, as LMU hit .522 behind six kills from Lea. The Lions forced Saint Mary's into timeouts at 6-2 and 10-2 as LMU won six straight points from 4-2 to 10-2 in the race to 15. The Lions reached match-point leading by 10 at 14-4, but Saint Mary's went on a last-second run, winning four straight to force a Lion timeout at 14-8. The break served its purpose as Madi Wilkerson erred on the final serve of the match, handing LMU the road victory.

LMU will look to continue its stellar play on Saturday when it travels to Pacific for a Noon match.