Stockton, Calif. - On the ropes and facing defeat, the Tiger volleyball team stormed back to claim a 3-2 upset win over No. 21, and previously undefeated, Loyola Marymount on Thursday, Sept. 25 at the Alex G. Spanos Center. The victory for the Tigers kicked off conference play as Pacific dominated late for their 12th win of the year, improving to 12-2 on the year with their ninth-straight win. The Lions fell to 12-1 overall with the loss as they dropped out of the ranks of the undefeated in Stockton. 

Set scores for the match were: 20-25, 21-25, 25-22, 25-22, 15-11.

The win marked Pacific's first win over a ranked team at the Spanos Center since the 2009 season when the Tigers downed No. 23 UC Irvine on Halloween night in a four-set victory.

Standing firm in the face of defeat, the Tigers battled back from down 2-0 to claim their biggest win of the season. After an up-and-down performance throughout the night, it was sophomore Lexi Elman who came up with the biggest swings for the Tigers when it mattered most in the fifth and final set. With her number repeatedly called by her setters, the second-year outside buried six of her career-high 22 kills in the final frame on just eight attacks to lead the Tigers to the victory. Elman's 22 kills paced the Tigers while it was junior Kat Schulz who kept Pacific afloat throughout the match with 20 kills on .306 attacking (20-5-49).

Down two sets to none the Tigers began their comeback slowly and surely using the knowledge that the first two sets had been within reach if not for self induced mistakes. Just like the first two sets of the match, the third set proved to be a closely contested game that came down to a late run by Pacific. Once leading by as much as five, the Tigers found themselves trailing late in the set at 20-19 as the Lions pushed to close out the match. 

However, unlike the first two sets, the Tigers were able to push back against LMU, overcoming the late charge with a 6-3 run to close out the frame. The Tigers' block, which had picked up the set prior, frustrated the Lions at the net resulting in three late errors that turned the tides of the set and the match.

With a set in hand, the Tigers jumped out to a five-point lead early, only to see the Lions again claw back late. Once again trailing in the waning moments of the set, the Tigers called upon Elman and Schulz to bail them out as the duo each came up with a pair of kills that rallied Pacific to a 7-1 run and set point. Pacific would hold despite the Lions' best efforts to comeback once again and claim the match. The biggest turning point in the set came thanks to their freshman Keri Gee who served the critical run for Pacific late and came up with a pair of point saving digs that set up the offense for the two hitters.

In the set, the Tigers held the Lions to just .128 hitting as they barely let the ball hit the floor with 19 digs, including six from freshman libero Katrin Gotterba. She would finish with 15 digs to lead the Tigers' defensively.

Holding all of the momentum, the Tigers started fast and finished strong in the fifth and final set as the Tigers opened on a 3-0 run which they mimicked later to essentially put the set and match away. Fittingly, it was Elman who came up with the final kill as she hammered a ball off the outside of the Lions' block to end the match.

Pacific was forced to mount its massive comeback as the Lions claimed the first two sets in very different fashions. Punching Pacific right off the bat, the Lions put the Tigers in an early hole in the opening set that they could not get out of. Behind an offensive attack that hit .387 to open the match, the Lions were able to run away with the first set. LMU used a balanced attack to do their damage while the Tigers found solace in the play of Schulz who posted seven kills on just nine swings to start the contest. 

A set later, the Tigers were able to disrupt the Lion attack with a defense that posted five blocks and 16 digs. However, the defensive production would not be enough to turn the match in the Tigers favor early. Unfortunately for Pacific, too many forced mistakes late in the set proved to be the difference as LMU closed on a 5-1 run behind the arm of Caitlin DeWitt.

Overall, the Tigers finished the match hitting .247 (64-23-166) while holding the Lions' to .205 hitting (62-28-166). In addition to her kills, Schulz finished with 11 digs to post her fourth double-double of the year. Junior Anne-Sophie Bauer ended with 10 kills while also posting a career-best five blocks on the night. Overall, Pacific tallied 15.5 blocks to the Lions 11.0 led by senior Gillian Howard and sophomore Alicja Wilk who each totaled seven. Schulz would add three of her own while junior setter Kimmy Whitson posted five blocks to go along with three kills and 18 assists while sharing time with freshman Andie Shelton.

The Lions were led by DeWitt who posted 19 kills on .245 hitting while adding six digs and a pair of blocks. In the middle Litara Keil came up with 17 kills on .353 hitting while adding six blocks while Sarah Sponcil finished just short of a double-double with 10 kills and nine digs. Defensively, freshman libero Kristen Castellanos was peppered in the back row by the Tigers' attackers as she came up with 27 digs, including 22 over the final three sets.

The Tigers will look to make it 10-straight victories on Saturday, Sept. 27 when they host Pepperdine at the Spanos Center at 7:00 pm. The Waves come into town after a five-set win over Saint Mary's in Moraga on Thursday night. In addition to the match, Pacific is hosting its annual Digs For Kids day, free for all kids ages 5-12, after the match.