CHICAGO –  For the second weekend in a row the Western Michigan volleyball team will return to Kalamazoo as tournament champions, defeating Loyola-Chicago in four sets (25-21, 11-25, 25-17, 25-21) on Saturday to capture the 2019 Hampton Inn Rambler Challenge championship.

The Broncos earned its second straight non-conference tournament title after defeating Montana State and Loyola-Maryland on Friday before defeating the host school Loyola-Chicago. Western Michigan begins the season 6-0 for the first time since 1996.

Junior Rachel Bontrager and freshman Maggie King earned All-Tournament team honors with Bontrager earning tournament MVP. Bontrager earned tournament MVP honors for the second time this season after achieving the MVP nod last weekend at the Purdue Fort Wayne Invitational.

WMU had four register double-digit kills with freshman Maggie King and senior Willow Martin leading the way with 12 each. King earned a double-double with 12 kills and 10 digs while Martin also had 12 kills with a staggering .476 attack percentage.

Bontrager ranked second on the team with 11 kills to go along with five digs and four assists. Rounding out the double digit kills was sophomore Meredith Phillips with 10 kills and a .292 attack percentage.

The setting duo of freshman Rose Duffy and Mary Marzo combined for 40 of WMU's 53 assists in the match while senior Kathleen Reilly led the Brown & Gold with 15 digs. As a team the Broncos hit just .231 but was dominant at the net with five blocks along with 10 service aces.  

WMU hits the road next weekend for its final non-conference tournament, Sept. 13-14 in Milwaukee, Wisc., for the Panther Invitational. The Broncos square off with Butler and Southeast Missouri on Friday, Sept. 13 before a match-up with host school Milwaukee on Saturday, Sept. 14.

The Broncos were dominant in the first set racing out to a 6-0 lead and forcing Loyola-Chicago to call a timeout. The Ramblers responded winning the next seven points to regain the lead before a kill from Bontrager tied the set back up at 7-7. Loyola-Chicago got to within one of the Broncos late in the set before WMU won six of the final eight points for the 25-21 set one victory.

The second set was a much different story for WMU who hit just .250 compared to Loyola-Chicago's .500 attack percentage to grab the second set 25-11.

In the third set, WMU trailed for just two points en route to a 25-17 set victory and a 2-1 lead in the match. WMU grabbed an early 7-3 lead thanks to a service ace by Duffy and propelled its advantage to 11-5 midway through the set as the Ramblers called a timeout. To end the set, WMU got a kill from Martin followed by a service ace from Bontrager.

Loyola-Chicago got off to a quick start in the fourth set, jumping out to a 5-1 lead before the Broncos rallied with five straight points to regain the lead. The Broncos pulled away midway through the set thanks in large part to three straight service aces from junior Kaley Smith. WMU cruised the rest of the set, resulting in a 25-21 set victory and taking the match, 3-1.