Volleyball Returns To Curb This Weekend For Massive MVC Matches

Belmont (7-15, 3-6 MVC) vs. Illinois State (9-11, 2-7 MVC) 

Friday, Oct. 21 | 6pm 

ESPN3 | Live Stats | Match Notes | Tickets 

Belmont vs. Bradley (7-14, 3-6 MVC) 

Saturday, Oct. 22 | 5pm 

ESPN3 | Live Stats | Tickets 

Curb Event Center | Nashville, Tennessee 

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Returning to the Music City after a four-match road stretch against Missouri Valley Conference opponents, the Belmont University volleyball team will take on Illinois State and Bradley this weekend in a pair of crucial MVC contests at the Curb Event Center. 

Belmont faces Illinois State on Friday night at 6 p.m. in their first home match since Oct. 1, then turns around and hosts Bradley on Saturday evening at 5 p.m. 

Exactly midway through the MVC schedule, Belmont sits in a four-way tie for seventh place in the conference standings with Bradley, Murray State, and Missouri State.  

Friday's opponent, the Redbirds, are one-game back of the Bruins in 11th place. 

The top eight teams will make the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament, hosted by Evansville on November 20-23. 

Both matches this weekend will be streamed on ESPN3. Live stats will be available on BelmontBruins.com, and in-game updates will be posted to Twitter by @BelmontVB.  

Tickets for both matches can be purchased here. 

Saturday's game against Bradley will be the annual "Pink Out" match, with fans encouraged to wear pink in support of breast cancer awareness. 

What's Bruin 

• Belmont is coming off a pair of tough losses on the road at Southern Illinois (3-1) and Missouri State (3-0) 

• After winning three in a row against Valley competition from Sept. 27 to Oct. 1, the Bruins have dropped four straight 

• Belmont won each of their last two home matches, a thrilling five-set triumph over Evansville on Sept. 30 and a sweep of Indiana State on Oct. 1 

• Junior libero Rachel McBride enters this weekend with 939 career digs, 61 shy of eclipsing 1,000 

• Junior middle Kristen Clemons ranks eighth in the MVC in hitting percentage (.317), ninth in blocks (70), and 13th in kills (226) 

• Among middle blockers, Clemons ranks first in the Valley in total kills (226) 

• The native of Louisville, Ky., has tallied double-digit kills in seven of her last eight matches 

• Junior outside hitter Laura Shoopman ranks 21st in the country in total kills (304) and is second in the Valley 

• Senior outside hitter Lauren Walsh has 26 kills in her last three matches, her second-most over a three-match span this season 

• Sophomore setter Peyton O'Brien has finished with at least 34 assists in 11 of the last 14 matches and eclipsed 100 points for the season in Saturday's loss to Missouri State 

• Junior middle blocker Sydney Willis is tied for fourth in the MVC in total blocks (78) 

• The Bruins have been stellar at the net, ranking fifth in the Valley in blocks per set (2.18) and third in opponent blocks per set (1.88) 

• Belmont has won at least one set in 17 of 22 matches this season 

• The Bruins took two sets off No. 63 RPI Valparaiso on Oct. 8, with 39 digs from Rachel McBride keeping Belmont competitive all the way through the fifth set 

About the Redbirds 

• Illinois State is the defending Missouri Valley Conference Tournament champion, and is one 21 teams in NCAA Division I to participate in each of the last four NCAA Tournaments 

• The Redbirds were the preseason favorite in the MVC Coaches Poll 

• Allie Matters is in her first season at the helm after four seasons leading Wright State 

• Last year's MVC Player of the Year, Tamara Otene, transferred to Georgia Tech over the offseason, while All-MVC Freshman Team selection Aliyah Moore followed former coach Leah Johnson to Michigan State 

• This season, Illinois State freshmen have accounted for 130 of the team's 159 kills (81.8%) over the last three matches 

• The Redbirds took down Cincinnati in the season opener and earned a victory over No. 25 Illinois on Sept. 17, the only win over a top-25 opponent this season for a Valley squad  

• Entering Friday, Illinois State has lost seven of their last eight matches, with the lone win coming last weekend against Indiana State 

• Friday marks the first-ever meeting between Belmont and Illinois State 

About the Braves 

• Last weekend, Bradley took down both Evansville (3-1) and Indiana State (3-0) after losing to both teams on the opening weekend of conference play 

• Bradley has had six matches go to five sets, and is 3-3 on those occasions 

• This season, Bradley is 0-6 on the road 

• Senior middle blocker Karagan Coggin was a First-Team All-MVC selection last season 

• Bradley's 25 combined league victories over the two previous seasons were the most in the conference over that stretch 

• Saturday marks the third meeting all-time between Bradley and Belmont. Bradley won both prior meetings, 3-1 in 2005 and 3-0 in 2019 

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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