ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Abby Hamilton and Lauren Link combined for 34 kills, but the U.S. Naval Academy edged the Loyola University Maryland volleyball team in the last two sets for a 25-16, 17-25, 26-24, 25-21 Patriot League victory on Friday evening.
 
Hamilton had a match-high 21 kills, hitting .341 with only six hitting errors on 44 swings, while Link converted 13 kills on 41 swings for the Greyhounds.
 
As a team, Loyola hit .237, but the Midshipmen were good for a .286 mark in their victory.
 
After taking a first-set setback, Loyola came out strong offensively in the second, hitting at a .393 pace while holding Navy to just a .062 attack percentage.
 
The then took a 24-23 lead in the third set after a Navy service error and looked to go up 2-1 in the match, but Navy sided out on an Averi Miller kill, and they then had two more kills to close the set with three points in a row to take the 2-1 lead themselves.
 
In the fourth, back-to-back Hamilton kills tied the score at 18-18, but Navy scored the next four and seven of the final 10 points to win the match.
 
Kacy Sekunda had 38 assists, nine digs and four kills for the Greyhounds, and Katie Forsythe finished the match with a team-high 14 digs.
 
With her next dig, she will tie the Patriot League career record in that category, matching American University's Kristen Largay's 2,012 from 2016-19.
 
Loyola will travel to American on Saturday for a 4 p.m. match.