NASHVILLE, Tenn.-- The Bruins will travel to Bowling Green, Ky.,
to face regional power Western Kentucky as they start the final
week of non-conference action. Tonight's match begins at 7 p.m.
Belmont is 0-11 against the Lady Toppers and will look to break
that streak Tuesday night on the road. The Bruins are coming off a
strong finish in the Country Inn & Suites Invitational last
weekend in Chattanooga. Belmont finished the tournament 2-1, its
best finish in a non-conference tournament this season. The Bruins
will look to use their strong, aggressive service game to gain an
advantage over Western Kentucky. Belmont currently ranks in the Top
25 nationally in service aces per set (22nd, 1.83/set, 110 total)
and lead the Atlantic Sun in that category.
The Bruins got solid contributions from three freshmen over the
weekend, adding to the arsenal led by senior outside hitter Kayla
Albritton, who has been a consistent leader for the team so far
this season. Against James Madison, Belmont got double-digit kills
from freshman outside hitter Jen Myer
(12), double-digit blocks from freshman middle hitter Allison
McCoy (10) and double-digit digs from freshman defensive
specialist Jamie
Lundstrom (10), demonstrating the Bruins' depth as they also
got solid performances from junior outside hitter and 2010
preseason All-Conference selection Maggie
Johnson, who led the team with 19 kills, and from senior middle
blocker Tara Blood,
who added 10 kills to go along with 11 from Albritton.
With the end of the non-conference season in sight, Belmont will
look to maintain the level of play that brought them success this
weekend and enter the conference slate on a winning note. The
Bruins battled Western Kentucky in a 2-3 loss at the Curb Event
Center a season ago, but have never taken a set against the Lady
Toppers in Bowling Green. Belmont will need strong performances
across the board to secure a win on the road tonight.
The next home action for the team will be this Saturday, Sept.
25th, against Florida Gulf Coast. With the return to a
single-round-robin format for the Atlantic Conference regular
season this year, Saturday's match against FGCU will not count in
the conference standings. The two teams will meet again in Fort
Myers in the conference match-up in November. First serve for
Saturday's home match is set for 2 p.m. in the Curb Event
Center.
Match Notes
