UT Martin Preview

Belmont (3-8, 1-0 OVC) vs. UT Martin (4-9, 0-0 OVC) | Friday, Sept. 24 | 6pm

ESPN+ | Live Stats | Match Notes

Belmont (3-8, 1-0 OVC) vs. UT Martin (4-9, 0-0 OVC) | Saturday, Sept. 25 | 2pm

ESPN+ | Live Stats | Match Notes

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Belmont University volleyball welcomes the University of Tennessee at Martin to Nashville this weekend for two important OVC clashes inside the Curb Event Center. First serve on Friday, Sept. 24, is set for 6 p.m., while first serve on Saturday, Sept. 25, is set for 2 p.m. 

The Bruins will look to build on a thrilling win over Tennessee State in the conference opener on Tuesday, while UT Martin will look to extend their three-game winning streak. 

Both matches will be broadcast live on ESPN+, with Noah Syverson and Ellie Ivancich on the call.

What's Bruin 

• Belmont earned a gritty win on Tuesday over a Tennessee State squad that had won eight of their first nine matches. The Bruins won 26-24, 24-26, 30-28, and 25-20 to start conference play 1-0. 

• The Bruins were led by Taylor Floyd (17 kills and 10 digs), Lauren Walsh (career-high 16 kills), Izzy Schauer (43 assists and 15 digs), and Kailee Bass (7 kills and 5 blocks). 

• Floyd came off the bench for the first time this season against the Tigers, and the Preseason All-OVC selection proceeded to tally her highest kill total of the year while hitting .304 from the floor 

• Walsh shined in her first home game of the season, breaking her previous career-high of 15 kills with an efficient performance (.316 hitting percentage) 

• The Bruins were uber-aggressive from the service line, putting Tennessee State out of system to begin points,  but committing a season-high 15 service errors in the process, breaking their previous high of 9 (vs. Alcorn State, vs. Chicago State) 

• After picking up five blocks on Tuesday, Kailee Bass is now 6th in the OVC in blocks per set (0.89) 

• Rachel McBride is currently 4th in the OVC in digs per set (4.53) 

• Tuesday's win marked the fourth time since Belmont joined the OVC in 2012 that the Bruins have won their conference opener 

About the Skyhawks 

• UT Martin began their season 1-9 but have won each of their last three matches, all sweeps, over Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Memphis, and Middle Tennessee 

• A big reason for their recent success has been the return of All-OVC Preseason selection Logan Wallick to the court. Since making her season debut against Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Sept. 17, the Skyhawks have gone unbeaten 

• Over her last two matches, Wallick has picked up 20 kills with only two attack errors in sweep victories over Memphis and Middle Tennessee 

• UT Martin has also gotten big contributions from seniors Karen Scanlon and Addison Conley, who have combined for 199 kills this season 

• The Skyhawks were picked to finish 6th in the Preseason OVC Poll  

Series History 

• Friday's contest will be the 26th all-time matchup between Belmont and UT Martin. The Skyhawks lead the series 15-10 

• UT Martin won the first ten meetings, but Belmont has won ten of the last 15 

• The Skyhawks won both meetings in the Spring 2021 season, taking a pair of four-set decisions in a doubleheader on February 24 

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.   

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