Box Score MARTIN, Tenn. -- Fueled by blocks and aces, Belmont Volleyball was able to pick up a win on the road at UT Martin on Saturday afternoon. The Bruins (11-7, 5-3 OVC) held off a feisty Skyhawk (6-17, 2-6OVC) team in four sets, 3-1.
Belmont jumped out to a hot start to open the first frame, going up 10-5 before a stunned Skyhawks bench called timeout. UT Martin attempted to rally and knotted the set, 13-13. However, Belmont was able to keep a substantial point distance for most of the stanza. Kills by redshirt sophomore Alexa Nichols (Walton, Ky.) and junior Arianna Person (Lenexa, Kan.) and a service ace by sophomore Tori Simmons (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) put Belmont ahead, 20-16. BU never looked back and rolled to the 25-19 set win.
Set two started in a similar fashion for the Bruins. Back-to-back kills by junior Brie Lewis (Stillwell, Kan.) put them on top, 6-4, and BU used the momentum to keep rolling. Belmont rolled off four consecutive points, capped with another set of back-to-back kills by Lewis and the Skyhawks were forced to burn their first timeout of the set, with BU on top, 10-6. The Bruins continued to roll on through the set and blew its lead up to 20-9. Even after calling a timeout, UTM could not find an answer to the hot hitting Bruins. Belmont cruised to the 25-11 win, fueled by a pair of service aces by junior Ellie Ivancich (Naperville, Ill.) and Skyhawk attack errors.
The Skyhawks battled to take the early lead in the third frame, going up 9-5. However, Belmont was able to quickly rally and used a service ace by Simmons to help knot the stanza, 9-9. The teams briefly fell into back-and- forth battle before Belmont began to pull away behind kills by Person and classmate Emma Price (Fort Mill, S.C.) and sophomore Courtlyn Ison (Ooltewah, Tenn.) helping on three consecutive blocks. UT Martin called a timeout and used the break to begin to whittle away at the Bruin lead. After rolling off four straight points, the Skyhawks knotted the set, 18-18, before going on to take a one-point lead. Belmont called timeout to regroup but UT Martin kept pressing, knotting the frame five times before taking the lead in extra points. Even with a kill by Lewis, Belmont was not able to hold on and fell, 28-26.
After building enough momentum to move into a fourth set, UT Martin pushed ahead to a 14-9 lead, forcing Belmont to call timeout. The Bruins began to dig deep and find kills to close the gap. After some quick work, BU was only down three, 16-13, after kills by sophomore Maggie Mullins (Nashville, Tenn.) and Person. This time it would the Skyhawks calling timeout. Belmont did not let up, following behind back-to-back service aces by Simmons to tie the frame, 17-17. After a battle that saw three more ties, Belmont would go on to outlast the Skyhawks. Back-to-back service aces by Price and a kill by Person separated BU from winning the match by one point. UTM crumbled under the pressure and handed the Bruins the 25-21 win on an attack error.
Price recorded another double-double with a match-high 44 assists and 10 digs. Person was one dig shy of picking up one of her own with a match-high 17 kills. Simmons finished with career bests in digs (11) and service aces (5) while Lewis collected 12 kills in the win. Ivancich led BU in digs with a total of 18. Ison racked up seven blocks, including one solo block.
Belmont returns to action on Tuesday, making the short trip down the road for the annual Battle of the Boulevard to conclude its five-match road stretch. The Bruins take on former conference rival Lipscomb beginning at 6:30 p.m. The contest will be shown on ESPN3. Fans may also follow the team's Twitter account (@BelmontVB) for live, in-game updates.
