Sacramento State women’s volleyball was defeated by Loyola Marymount in today’s afternoon match 3-0, (14-25,13-25, 21-25).  

The first set of the match was led by freshman outside hitter Shannon Boyle with three kills and hit .400. Madeline Cannon, Morgan Stanley, Courtney Dietrich and Kennedy Kurtz also contributed to the total of points scored in the first set. The Hornets came up short with a resulted 14-25 loss.

The second set was the Hornets’ lowest score of the match, ending in a loss of 13-25. Kurtz led the team in the second set with six assists and hit .400 along with teammate Lauren Aikels.

The third set was the closest set of the match resulting in a score of 21-25. The team hit .303 in the third set and combined for 31 kills in all three sets.

Morgan Stanley contributed a clutch service ace during the third set that put her team in a good position at 20-22, followed by a Loyola Marymount error putting the Hornets at a close 21-22.  

Head Coach Ruben Volta said he felt  the Hornets had a great third set match and came back fighting.  

“We’re still sort of trying to find ourselves as a team, and we have so many new players and played a really strong opponent,” Volta said.

Sophomore middle blocker Madeline Cannon said her team can learn to rise to the occasion from facing tough opponents such as Loyola Marymount.

“I think we’re going to work on just being disciplined and focusing on the next play, focusing on our side, and as a team, focusing on us,” Cannon said.

Kurtz agreed with Cannon stating the Hornets can learn to play at a quicker tempo from their game against Loyola Marymount and use it against their game later on tonight against UC Santa Barbara.

“I think collectively we should focus on our defense and find ways to score right away,” Kurtz said.

The final game of the Sacramento State Volleyball Invitational will be against UC Santa Barbara 7:30 p.m. tonight.