Box Score
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Four Bruins finished with double-digit kills, and Belmont University volleyball earned a 3-1 win over visiting UT Martin on Friday night inside the Curb Event Center.
Belmont won 25-17, 25-23, 25-27, and 25-19 to improve to 2-0 in OVC play. The 2-0 start to conference action is the best for the Bruins since the 2017 season, when they started 3-0.
"I'm really proud of them," head coach Katelyn Harrison said. "They're playing well right now and I still don't think we're firing on all cylinders. It's fun, they're loving it, and this is a good place to be right now."
A balanced offensive attack highlighted the Belmont effort, with four different Bruins eclipsing ten kills. Laura Shoopman led the way with 17 kills on a .368 hitting mark with 14 digs, Taylor Floyd added 15 kills and four blocks, Mary Catherine Ball chipped in a season-high 13 kills with a career-high five blocks, and Lauren Walsh contributed 12 important kills as well.
Facilitating it all was Izzy Schauer, who dished out a career-high 53 assists with seven digs, helping Belmont hit a remarkable .244, their highest percentage of the season.
The Bruins started things off the right way, blitzing the Skyhawks with a 15-3 lead to start off Game 1. Kills from Floyd and Shoopman started the avalanche, with Skyhawk attack and service errors contributing to the lopsided score. UT Martin battled back to make the margin more respectable, but Belmont had built up too much of a cushion and took the opening set, 25-17.
In the second set, the action started to tighten up. After an Addy Vaughn kill for the visitors, UT Martin had secured a 14-9 lead. The Bruins buckled in, however, and broke off a 7-2 run to tie it at 16-16. With both teams trading blows, UT Martin took a 23-22 lead, in position to tie up the match at 1-1. Instead, Ball had other ideas, getting back-to-back kills before a Skyhawk setting error gave the Bruins a 25-23 win.
Their backs against the wall, UT Martin continued to claw and kept the third set ultra-close. Neither team led by more than two points the entire way, with a loud Curb Event Center crowd roaring after Floyd recorded another kill to tie things at 23-23. UT Martin had four set point opportunities in all, but Belmont had a response every time the Skyhawks seemed on the verge of extending the match. Eventually, two costly service errors hampered the Bruins' efforts, and UT Martin held on for a 27-25 win.
The Bruins recaptured momentum directly out of the gate to begin Game 4, leading 17-9 before rolling to a 25-19 win to clinch their second conference win in a row.
Belmont recorded ten total team blocks in the win with only one block error, and added six service aces from the line to secure the victory.
The Bruins get a rematch with UT Martin tomorrow at the Curb Event Center to wrap up the season series with the Skyhawks. First serve is scheduled for 2 p.m and will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
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.
