Box Score MURFREESBORO, Tenn. -- Belmont volleyball couldn't outlast host Middle Tennessee Saturday evening as the Bruins dropped a tough, five-set contest to the Blue Raiders in BU's final match of the 2014 Blue Raider Bash.
The opening set between the Bruins and Blue Raiders proved to be a close affair as Belmont found itself trailing, 16-13, midway through.
BU scored five of the next six points in order to take a slim, 18-17, advantage and the Bruins never trailed again as a pair of kills by Scarlet Gable (Munford, Tenn.) and a MT serving error gave the set to Belmont, 25-23.
The Blue Raiders tied up the match in the second stanza as Middle Tennessee tallied five of the final seven points to pull ahead for the 25-20 victory.
Belmont jumped out to the early, 6-4, advantage in the fourth set off three kills by Gable.
The set stayed extremely tight the rest of the way as neither team held a lead larger than two points.
With the match knotted at 24, a kill by Arianna Person (Lenexa, Kan.) and a MT hitting error gave the Bruins a 26-24 victory as Belmont took a 2-1 advantage on the match.
Middle Tennessee once again responded in the fourth set as Belmont coundn't take advantage of late, 22-16, lead. MT tallied the next four points to draw to within two, 22-20, and a pair of kills by Chelsea Owens tied up the match at 24.
With the match knotted at 25, the Blue Raiders sent the contest into a fifth and deciding set as a pair of Belmont hitting errors gave MT a 27-25 victory.
Three kills by Gable helped Belmont get off to a strong start in the final set as the Bruins held a 7-3 advantage early.
MT responded once again tallying six-straight points in order to take a 9-7 lead.
A kill by BU's Jocelyn Youngdahl (Stillwater, Minn.) stemmed the Blue Raider run but that was the closest the Bruins got as Middle Tennessee (3-7) went on for the 15-11 victory and captured the match, 3-2.
Gable spearheaded the Bruin charge as the senior finished with a double-double of 19 kills and 19 digs.
Freshman Ellie Ivancich (Naperville, Ill.) recorded a team-most 23 digs while setter Emma Price (Fort Mill, S.C.) finished with career-high 51 assists to go with 13 digs.
Belmont (3-8) returns to action on Friday as the Bruins open the 2014 Bruin Classic at the Curb Event Center against Wright State at 6:30 p.m.
