NEW ORLEANS, La. – The hitting combo of Gigi Sasso and Rae Ann Hall powered the Blue Mountain offense past (RV) Loyola Friday night in an early, key SSAC matchup.
The Toppers earned the 3-1 (25-18, 20-25, 25-18, 25-18) over a team that is receiving votes to be ranked in the National Top 25, while BMCU fell out of receiving votes in the same poll last week.
Blue Mountain got the best of the Wolf Pack on net defense early and would eventually have 10 assisted blocks and a solo.
After dropping the second set to the Wolf Pack, the Toppers dropped the hammer as Sasso laid into the Loyola defense with 16 kills and Hall with 11.  Sasso would hit at a clip of .382 and Hall at .259.  As a team, the Toppers hit .163 and held Loyola to just .115.
The 6-2 rotation continues to work for the Toppers, as SSAC Setter of the Week Reanna Brown handed out 27 assists and Michaela Frederick dished out 17.
"It's hard to come into Loyola and get a win, so we couldn't be happier to get this one," BMCU head coach Reid Gann said.  "We knew we had a really good team in front of us, and our ladies responded.  Our defense gave us the opportunity to get our hitters to the net on offense, and that was a big key tonight."
Jaiyah Jackson flew around the court on defense for the Toppers with 22 digs and Kora Wilson chipped in 11.  Sasso would also have nine digs, and all together, the Toppers had 77 digs on the night.
Randi Crandall and Olivia Ashton both had three assisted blocks on defense for Blue Mountain, while A'Dasia Porter had two assisted and a solo.
Blue Mountain now owns four straight wins over Loyola, dating back to November 2021.
The Toppers (8-1) will next travel to state rival William Carey Saturday for another SSAC battle with start time set for 1 p.m. CT in Hattiesburg, Miss.
 
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