It took 5 nerve-wracking sets, but #7 Loyola knocked off defending NCAA Champion and the #1 ranked team in the nation, UC Irvine.

Congratulations, guys! WOW!!

Nice!

Excellent. Any chance we can sign up the volleyball coach to head up the basketball team too?

_________________
Cigarboy sucks!

Great victory for the Ramblers! It should help ease some of the pain from the semi-final loss last year. Two more major tests tonight and tomorrow.
I hope the team can keep the momentum going. It would sure help their confidence level. The team is still rather young, five of the ten who played last night are sophomores and one was a freshman.

Great win! It's great to have the chance to play against top teams - and even better to do it at home. With a top seed in the MIVA and having the Final Four at home, they could have a LOT of big home game this year.

_________________
MBB Scholarship Chart

What a stretch of games.... on three consecutive nights, we play the #1, #3, and #11 teams in the country, including the two time defending champions and the national runner-ups from the two previous years. Hope the spring in the legs is still there by Saturday night.

BTW, UC Irvine had just beat Loyola's top rival for the MIVA crown at Lewis, 3-1, the night before we beat them.

It would be great if Lewis is having a down year. Not that losing 3-1 to the #1 team in the nation necessarily means that. I believe Ohio State, also in the MIVA, is ranked to begin the year as well.

_________________
MBB Scholarship Chart

Lewis has always been our nemesis. They always seem to win home court advantage on a tiebreaker and then beat us out for the MIVA title in five sets. Lewis was ranked #9 in the preseason poll, Ohio State was ranked #12, and Ball State was unranked but got some votes. Would love to win the MIVA with no drama for once.