LOS ANGELES — It doesn't get much more exciting than five sets of volleyball, and Saint Mary's provided that against LMU. In a rematch following yesterday's season-opening defeat, the Gaels were more prepared for the Lions attack from the line, and from the net. As both teams pushed it the distance, Saint Mary's was able to escape with a five-set win, closing it out with a 17-15 final in the fifth set. Both teams now see their records at 1-1 after the Gaels earned their first win at LMU since 2012.
 
THRILLING THIRD
Saint Mary's came so close to pulling ahead with a 2-1 lead in the third set, where they led 23-20 and were seeking to close it out. The Lions earned three straight points to knot it up at 23-23, and from there, the back-and-forth commenced. The Gaels earned their first attempt at match point on a Jennifer "Boo" Laird kill, but the Lions answered. Then, it was the Lions with five opportunities to close out the set before they finally did on an Audrey Klemp kill, ending the set at 30-28 in the highest-scoring set between the two sides this week.
 
FORCE IN THE FOURTH
Saint Mary's had a much stronger hold on things in the fourth set, where they never trailed after getting up 4-3 early on. After another kill from Laird that extended the Gaels lead to 18-12, the Lions went on a 4-0 to tighten things up. SMC responded strongly, however, and was able to close out the set with a 25-20 finish on a Hawley Harrer kill, setting up the dramatic fifth set.
 
MORE EXTRA POINTS
As if the third set wasn't exciting enough, the score would be pushed beyond the max of 15 in the fifth set. The Gaels had a three-point lead at 11-8 before the Lions clawed back to force a tie at 12-12. Elena Baka got the kill coming out of a tonight (yet another in a career-type night for her) to give the Gaels and advantage, but with the Lions getting the next two, it was suddenly a match-point situation for the Lions. The Gaels kept it alive and used an attack error to go up 16-15 and another to clinch the win at 17-15.
 
MAJOR IMPROVEMENTS
Saint Mary's out-hit LMU and put up an attack percentage north of 23% on Wednesday, a big improvement from their season opener…SMC also had nine aces in the five-setter, after only two in the first match…three Gaels had 10+ kills (Baka, Chandler Cowell, Laird), while Cowell added 10 digs and Makenna Joyce led the way with 25…Trinity Durfee had the most block assists on the afternoon with four.
 
BROWNING BITES
"A great win for the Gaels. The team battled and believed. LMU is a good team, and to bounce back after last night's loss shows the character our team has. We fought off set points in the third and had chances to win in four but couldn't close it out. That could have been a dagger for a weaker team, but our team just kept fighting. We had match point against us but didn't fold. Quite the opposite – the Gaels didn't hesitate to play our game and finish." – head coach Rob Browning
 
CHRISTENSEN QUOTES
"We fought extremely hard tonight against LMU and it was so much fun. Each member of our team played a huge role in our success and we were relentless. Our energy and connectivity on and off the court was consistent which is always a goal of ours. Great night to be a Gael!" – Selbie Christensen.
 
UP NEXT
The Gaels will head home for the first time this spring season as they welcome in Pepperdine next week. Saint Mary's will host Pepperdine at 2:00 pm on both Tuesday, February 2 and Wednesday, February 3. The home matches on tap will be the first games inside UCU Pavilion for Saint Mary's since early November of 2019.