Aug. 31, 2007

Box Score

CHARLESTON, Ill. -

Memphis 3, Loyola-Chicago 0
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Memphis (2-3)      30  30  30
Loyola (1-3)       21  18  25

Senior Shelby Burton pounded 11 kills to become the 20th Memphis volleyball player to reach 1,000 career kills, and freshman Kelsey Labrum put away a match-high 13 kills to lead the Tigers to a sweep of Loyola Friday night at the Eastern Illinois Pepsi Challenge. Memphis got 15 digs from libero Becky Shaffer.

The Tigers wasted little time gaining control of the match, as they used a four-point run to break a 2-2 tie. A kill by Burton extended Memphis' cushion to 18-10 as the Tigers cruised to a 30-21 lead.

Memphis continued its all-around dominance in game two, hitting .387 and holding Loyola to a .000 percentage. The Tigers opened the set with a 5-0 run and never trailed, despite a pair of rallies that cut the Memphis lead to one point. With a 13-12 advantage, Rebekah Strickland made her debut at the middle hitter position and provided Memphis with energy and much-needed production in the middle. Strickland, who usually plays on the outside, knocked down three kills as Memphis outscored the Ramblers 17-6 over the last half of the game. Strickland finished the night with five kills, a .444 attack average and one block.

Both squads battled closely in the early-goings of the third frame, but Memphis grabbed command when Laura Côté and Sarah Bury downed consecutive kills to give the Tigers a 7-5 lead. Loyola closed an eight-point Memphis lead to just one point at 21-22. The UofM scored eight of the final 12 rallies to clinch the sweep.

Memphis, who improves to 2-3 on the year, will face Indiana State and Iona at 12:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, respectively.

Match Notes
• With her first kill of the afternoon, senior middle blocker Shelby Burton became the 20th Tiger volleyball player ever to reach the 1,000-kill plateau at University of Memphis. Burton slammed 11 kills in the sweep of Loyola.
• Freshman libero Becky Shaffer was awarded her first collegiate start in the Tigers' second match of the day. The Cincinnati, Ohio native had a match-high 15 digs.
• With her eight kill, senior outside hitter Ashley Liford moved into 12th place on Memphis' all-time kills list in Friday night's win over Loyola. The San Antonio native completed the evening with 11 kills.
• With the win over Loyola, Carrie Yerty ties the all-time coaching wins record at Memphis, with her 212th career victory. She ties former coach Diane Hale.
• Freshman Kelsey Labrum continued her hot hitting in the Tigers nightcap. Labrum hammered down seven kills in game two alone, before finishing the night with a match-high 13 kills--her second consecutive contest with double-digit kill totals.