Box Score CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. -- Belmont University volleyball saw their season come to an end in the first round of the OVC Championship on Thursday afternoon, as the No. 7 seed Bruins fell to No. 2 seed Morehead State, 3-0, in Cape Girardeau, Mo.
Belmont (9-20, 7-11 OVC) lost 16-25, 21-25, 17-25 to Morehead State (19-11, 14-4 OVC), who now advances to the OVC Semifinals to take on No. 3 seed Austin Peay on Friday.
The loss wraps up what has been a year full of positives under third-year head coach Katelyn Harrison. The Bruins picked up their most conference wins since 2017, made their first appearance in the OVC Tournament since 2017, finished with a 7-5 home mark, got their first-ever road victory at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, beat Murray State for the first time since 2015, and had a player selected to an All-Conference team for a second consecutive season, the 13th time that has happened in program history.
From Coach
"This group of five seniors has wanted to leave it different than when they came in. My first year, we certainly didn't feel like there were a lot wins-- in the win column, but also the small victories. One of the things that I've learned is to celebrate the small moments and the little victories, and I think that this group has been big on making me see that. We started conference strong, beating Tennessee State and then taking a match off of UT Martin, and overall I thought we've had a lot of really good matches. We've beat some people that we haven't beat in a while, so that's always fun. The whole time, the seniors have been sort of leading the way on that. It's been really cool for them to feel like they've accomplished something, and that they truly have left the program in a better place than when they found it."
"They're all phenomenal human beings and they all have a special place in my heart for very different reasons. They're going to be missed in many ways, and some of those I don't know if we even felt yet. I know that the team is better for having played with them, and there's a lot of valuable information that I hope they continue to impart on this group while they're still on campus." --head coach Katelyn Harrison
Match Recap
Taylor Floyd, Mary Catherine Ball, and Lauren Walsh all finished with seven kills each for the Bruins, who hit .167 as a team. Ball also tallied four of Belmont's eight block assists, and provided several big momentum-shifting plays throughout the match.
Morehead State came at Belmont from a variety of spots along the net and finished with an efficient .282 attack percentage. The Eagles hit .351 in the third set alone to clinch the sweep.
In the first set, Belmont and Morehead State traded points all the way through the first media timeout, with the Bruins trailing just 15-13 as the teams went to their respective sidelines. Seven different Bruins recorded a kill, highlighting what was a sound and balanced attack.
However, coming out of the break, the Eagles turned up the heat and closed on a 10-3 run to go up 1-0 in sets, 25-16.
In the second set, Belmont started scorching hot, jumping out to a 6-1 advantage. Yet, the Eagles would battle back to tie things at 10-10, one of nine ties or lead changes in the frame. On a Ball kill, Belmont would take their final lead of the set at 15-14, before the Eagles closed things out in the final stretch to win, 25-21.
In the third and final set, Floyd and Ball each tallied three kills, with Rachel McBride chipping in five digs to keep rallies extended. After a Lauren Walsh kill, the Bruins led the Eagles 10-9, but Morehead State proceeded to rattle off an 8-1 run to lead 18-10. A Kailee Bass kill brought Belmont to within 23-17, but the Eagles got back-to-back points to secure the sweep.
Belmont now bids farewell to their five seniors: Taylor Floyd, Carly Mason, Peyton Kelley, Kailee Bass, and Mary Catherine Ball.
Follow Belmont volleyball on social media - @BelmontVB on Twitter and @belmontvball on Instagram - for complete coverage of the Bruins. Stay up to date with all of Belmont's athletic programs via the official app of the Belmont Bruins, available both in the Apple App Store and on Google Play.
