EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - Southern Illinois University Edwardsville volleyball made quick work of Senior Day with a 25-14, 25-22, 15-17 triumph over Loyola at the Vadalabene Center on Sunday afternoon.

SIUE improved to 12-10 as Head Coach Todd Gober honored his four seniors - Sydney Winslow, Karie Downing, Diane Schmidlin and Noelle Franke.

"It was a great win against a great program and a higher-ranked team," Gober said. Loyola is now 9-14 overall.

And the match ended with a senior earning the final kill as Franke pounded the ball for match point.

"Noelle did a great job on the outside and was smart with the ball," said Gober.

Winslow was the team's leading hitter with 12 kills and a .500 hitting percentage. Freshman Julia Whitfield was next in line with 10 kills.

"Sydney had her typical big day. She came alive in the third set and exploded," Gober said.

SIUE overpowered the visiting Ramblers in nearly every category. The Cougars recorded more digs than Loyola 44-41 behind 14 from Downing, who added a match-high three service aces.

"Karie's big contribution today was her serving. When she got it over, she was scoring points for us," added Gober.

Gober said senior defensive specialist Schmidlin made a difference Sunday.

"Diane played a great match, and she made them (Loyola) adjust their offense."

Sammi Minton controlled the offensive flow for SIUE with 32 assists.

Diana Schulte led the Ramblers with eight kills. Loyola hit .033 as a team.

SIUE has little time to prepare for its next match as Valparaiso invades the Vadalabene Center for a 7 p.m. match Monday. SIUE's final home match is Thursday when the Cougars face a rematch with Murray State at 5:30 p.m.

"It is an opportunity to increase our record, give us some confidence, and show our fans that volleyball is back," Gober said.

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