Volleyball Falters at Home to Bradley

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Despite a strong start, the Belmont University volleyball team faltered at home on Saturday, falling to visiting Bradley, 3-1, at the Curb Event Center. 

Belmont (7-17, 3-8 MVC) was dominant in the first set but was overtaken by Bradley (8-15, 4-7 MVC) in the next three frames, 25-14, 23-25, 15-25, 21-25. 

Kristen Clemons led the way for Belmont with 11 kills on .333 hitting with three service aces. 

Lauren Walsh had perhaps her best match of the season prior to exiting the action in the second set with an injury, tallying ten kills with three aces, three digs, and a solo block. 

Brooke Gilleland chipped in ten kills off the bench, hitting an efficient .250 and collecting two digs. 

Rachel McBride finished with a team-high 14 digs to go along with four assists, and Savanah Brandt had her best game as a Bruin, picking up eight kills on 16 swings with a block and a dig. 

Peyton O'Brien facilitated the offense to the tune of 45 assists, helping the Bruins hit .293 for the match. 

It marks the second-highest attack percentage the Bruins have hit in a loss this season, and was their highest attack percentage since a Sept. 24 defeat to Southern Illinois. 

Belmont picked up eight service aces on the night, their most since a sweep of Indiana State on Oct. 1. 

The Bruins were unstoppable out of the gate, jumping out to a 7-1 lead on two aces from Clemons, a pair of kills from Brandt, and a pair of kills from Walsh. 

Belmont never slowed down, leading 12-6 and 17-9 and closing on a 4-0 run to take the first frame, 25-14. 

The Bruins hit an astounding .455 in the opening set, with 17 kills to just two attack errors.  

Brandt did most of her damage in the first set, collecting four kills on five swings. Walsh added four kills and two aces to help Belmont take a 1-0 lead in sets. 

Things got tighter in the second frame with both teams playing error-free. Belmont hit .314 in the second set, while Bradley wasn't far behind at .297. Walsh added six more kills without an error, but departed with an injury. 

Belmont tied the set at 15-15 and 18-18, but couldn't stop the Bradley attack down the stretch as the Braves tied it up, 1-1. 

Bradley roared to a quick win in the third set, 25-15, and jumped out to a big advantage in the fourth set, 9-1, before the Bruins stormed back with a 9-2 run of their own to cut the deficit to 10-11. 

Off the bench, Laura Shoopman tallied all six of her kills in the fourth set without recording an error, helping power Belmont back within a point at 19-20. 

However, the Braves closed strong, wrapping up their first road win of the season with a 25-21 win in the fourth. 

Up Next 

Belmont will head back on the road with a trip to the Hawkeye State next weekend to face the top two teams in the Missouri Valley Conference. The Bruins will take on Drake on Friday, Oct. 28, in Des Moines before traveling to Northern Iowa on Saturday, Oct. 29, to face the Panthers in Cedar Falls. 

Both matches will be streamed on ESPN3, and live stats will be available on BelmontBruins.com. In-game updates will be posted to Twitter by @BelmontVB. 

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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