Belmont vs. Marist at the Panther Invitational in Atlanta, Ga.

Belmont BEL 0-1,0-0 MVC

Auburn AUB 1-0,0-0 SEC

Belmont BEL

0-1,0-0 MVC

Final

Aug. 26, 2022

Auburn AUB

1-0,0-0 SEC

Set Scores
Team	1	2	3	F
Belmont BEL	23	19	19	(0)
Auburn AUB	25	25	25	(3)

Marist Marist 2-0,0-0 MAAC

Belmont BEL 0-2,0-0 MVC

Marist Marist

2-0,0-0 MAAC

Final

Aug. 26, 2022

Belmont BEL

0-2,0-0 MVC

Set Scores
Team	1	2	3	4	F
Marist Marist	25	25	16	25	(3)
Belmont BEL	18	22	25	13	(1)

Game Recap: Volleyball | 8/26/2022 5:49:00 PM

Clemons Shines, Volleyball Drops Two In Atlanta

Single-match block assist record falls as Bruins drop pair to Auburn and Marist

Next Match:

at Georgia State

8/27/2022 | 1 PM

Next Match

Full Schedule

Aug. 27 (Sat) / 1 PM

at Georgia State

History

Recap
Roster

ATLANTA, Ga. -- The Belmont University volleyball team opened up the 2022 season on Friday at the Panther Invitational in Atlanta, Georgia, falling in three sets to Auburn in the opener on Friday morning before dropping a four-set match to Marist in the afternoon at GSU Sports Arena.

Belmont (0-2, 0-0 MVC) fell to SEC-foe Auburn (1-0, 0-0 SEC), 23-25, 19-25, 19-25, and fell to Marist (2-0, 0-0 MAAC), 18-25, 22-25, 25-16, 13-25.

"We've got to get more consistent," head coach Katelyn Harrison said. "Obviously, it's the beginning of the year--we've got a new team and new people are working together, so consistency is definitely going to be one of the things we talk about often, but we need more people to step up and we've got to get to a more consistent lineup."

With 11 block assists in the second match against Marist, Kristen Clemons set the program record for block assists in a match, breaking the previous mark of ten held by Allison McCoy (2012) and Alexa Nichols (2015). Her 11 blocks in the contest rank second all-time for a single match, trailing only the 13 collected by Nichols in 2016.

Auburn 3, Belmont 0

Belmont threatened in each of the three sets, but Auburn pulled away for a 3-0 victory in the Bruins' season opener on Friday morning, winning 25-23, 25-19, 25-19.

Auburn used their size advantage at the net to collect 13 total blocks in the match, and out-hit Belmont .206 to .071

Belmont came out of the gate swinging, leading 9-5 in the opening set after a pair of Auburn attack errors, and later secured a 12-8 lead after a Laura Shoopman kill.

The Tigers battled back and tied things at 18-18 before Peyton O'Brien dumped a ball that found a vacated spot on the court, giving the Bruins their last lead of the frame at 19-18.

A couple of Bruin service errors put Belmont against the wall, allowing Auburn to close out the opening frame, 25-23.

In the second set, Belmont again got out to an early lead, taking a 5-3 advantage before the Tigers rattled off a 13-0 run to take a commanding 17-5 upper hand.

The Bruins refused to quit, going on a 6-0 run of their own that was fueled by kills from Shoopman, Emily Warmenhoven, and a pair of back-to-back service aces from Lauren Walsh that forced an Auburn timeout.

Belmont narrowed the gap to 16-20, but Auburn shut the door and took the set, 25-19.

In the third and final game, Auburn could do no wrong in the early going and raced out to a 9-1 lead.

However, the Bruins refused to roll over and grinded back into things thanks to error-free volleyball and a crescendo of momentum that peaked with a kill from Kristen Clemons in the middle to give Belmont a 13-12 lead.

An Elizabeth Godfrey ace and kills from O'Brien, Shoopman, and Brooke Gilleland kept Belmont nipping at Auburn's heels, but the Tigers found their groove again and secured the sweep with a 25-19 set victory.

Laura Shoopman led the Bruin offense with 11 kills, while Kristen Clemons chipped in seven kills and Lauren Walsh added five kills. Peyton O'Brien dished out 25 assists in her Belmont debut, while Rachel McBride stood out in the back-row to the tune of a team-high 12 digs.

Marist 3, Belmont 1

Friday afternoon saw Belmont win their first set of 2022, but still end up on the short end of a 3-1 decision at the hands of Marist.

The Bruins dominated at the net, collecting 14 blocks, but Marist out-hit Belmont .228 to .183 and responded swiftly after Belmont seemed to grab momentum with a commanding win in the third set.

"Laura [Shoopman] was really hot against Tennessee last week but sort of struggled to get into a groove today, so as a result we had to mix in some other attackers," Harrison said. "I thought Brooke [Gilleland] came in and did a really nice job, I thought Lilly [Lutz] came in and did a nice job of running the offense. I think Kristen [Clemons] was great, and she definitely showed she's more than a one-dimensional middle blocker."

Clemons was a force, securing her first career double-double with 13 kills and 11 blocks. Her 11 block assists set a single-match program record, and her 11 blocks rank second all-time for a single-match.

"Blocking has been something I've stayed on Kristen about for a long time," Harrison said. "And so to see her starting to become not just an attacker but also a blocker, not only is it rewarding, but it's certainly going to help us as we continue to go."

Marist led 11-4 early in the opening set, throwing the first punch and never letting the Bruins get within four the rest of the frame on the way to a 25-18 win.

In the second set, Belmont relied upon Clemons, Willis, and Shoopman, among others, to set the tone up front, picking up a remarkable seven total blocks. Time after time, the Bruins turned away Red Fox attackers with resounding denials. Clemons alone tallied seven of her 11 block assists in the frame, keeping Belmont in the mix before Marist ended on a 3-0 run to break a 22-22 tie and take a 2-0 set lead.

Belmont turned the tide in the third frame, hitting an astonishing .458 with 12 kills and only one attack error. Clemons paced the Bruins with four kills, while freshman Brooke Gilleland chipped in three of her own, to help lead Belmont to a convincing 25-16 win and force a fourth set.

In the fourth and final game, Marist responded by hitting .400 with four blocks to close out the match with a 25-13 win.

Final Word

"Marist didn't make a ton of errors and they were a really scrappy team and kept balls in play, and it challenged us. So hopefully we can walk away from this and tomorrow come in against Georgia State making some changes but knowing we can be a really good team. We showed it in Game One against Auburn, we showed it in Game Four against Marist, and we showed it at Tennessee. But now, it's can we consistently show that for multiple games in a row and string together a match." --Katelyn Harrison

Up Next

Belmont closes out their weekend at the Panther Invitational with a Saturday matinee against host-school Georgia State, who was swept by Marist earlier on Friday and will face Auburn later this evening. First serve is scheduled for 2 p.m. ET at GSU Sports Arena in Atlanta.

The match will be broadcast on ESPN+, 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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