Box Score JACKSONVILLE, Ala. -- Incredible rallies that had the entire arena on their feet was not enough down the stretch to lift Belmont Volleyball to a win on Friday night. The Bruins (2-28, 1-14 OVC) fell 3-0 on the road at Jacksonville State (17-9, 11-3 OVC).
JSU was able to collect four straight points to open the first set before the Bruins settled in for offensive work. BU was able to knot the score at 14-14 behind kills by sophomore Mary Catherine Ball (Hendersonville, N.C.), senior Huntir Bass (Mobile, Ala.), junior Halee Van Poppel (Argyle, Texas) combined with a block by Huntir Bass and newcomer MacKenzie Harless (Brownsburg, Ind.). The score would be tied two more times before the Gamecocks used a 5-0 run to pull ahead, 21-16. Jacksonville State used another late run to pull away for good and secure the 25-18 win.
The Gamecocks looked to grab an early lead in set two but Belmont rallied to move within one, 7-6, thanks to a Van Poppel service ace. BU continued fighting and used a kill deep into the left corner by Bass to knot the score, 11-11. The set would fall into three more scoring stalemates through the frame. BU remained within striking distance down the stretch, closing the gap to one point, 22-21, following another Van Poppel kill. However, the late momentum was not enough as JSU went on to take the set, 25-22.
The scoring stalemates continued into the third stanza with the teams being locked up seven times. The opponents would only be separated by one point through the midpoint of the set with Belmont holding the edge. Suddenly, the Gamecocks surged behind a 4-0 run to go up, 15-13, forcing the Bruin bench to call for its first huddle session of the night. JSU expanded their lead to as many as four points but the Bruins clawed back into the set, trimming the point differential to two points, 22-20. Unfortunately, the late rally would not be enough to push BU down the stretch as the Gamecocks grabbed the final set, 25-21.
For the match, junior Halee Van Poppel (Argyle, Texas) recorded 13 kills, followed by sophomore Mary Catherine Ball (Hendersonville, N.C.) with 11. Sophomore Carly Mason (Forsyth, Ill.) tallied 17 assists to cross the 1,000-plateau for her career, followed by senior Akia Warrior (Fort Worth, Texas) with 16. Sophomore Faith Cobaugh (Union, Ky.) notched 11 digs. Freshman Kailee Bass (Aurora, Ill.) finished with a match-high five block assists.
Belmont returns to action on Saturday afternoon for its final contest of the 2019 campaign. The Bruins travel to in-state foe Tennessee Tech for a matchup beginning at 2 p.m. Live stats will be available and the contest can be seen live on ESPN+. Fans may also follow the team's Twitter account (@BelmontVB) for live, in-game updates.
