EAST LANSING, Mich. -- The Belmont University Volleyball program (3-4) faced Syracuse (0-6) to finish out the Kathy DeBoer Invitational. The Bruins swept the Orange (25-23, 25-22, 25-16) to collect back-to-back sweeps for the weekend.
In their first meeting with Syracuse, Belmont came out on top with a sweep and win against a power five school for the first time since 2014. Syracuse is also coming off a top 100 season in 2022.
Brooke Gilleland and
Kamryn Olson were named to the Kathy DeBoer All-Tournament Team. Outside
Brooke Gilleland tallied 26 kills and a .400 hitting percentage in the tournament. Setter
Kamryn Olson finished the weekend with 82 assists and 25 digs.
How it Happened
Belmont came off a dominant sweep against Delaware State and entered the match versus Syracuse with the same intensity. From the first serve the Bruins led the Orange all throughout set one. Belmont quickly found themselves up 12-9 off a kill by
Ally Peterson. The team continued to apply pressure and fight their way to a 25-23 set one win.
Set two started off slow and the Bruins found themselves down 5-11 early on.
Sydney Willis and
Kamryn Olson provided back-to-back kills for the Bruins at 10-12 to spark a set two comeback.
Elizabeth Godfrey served up an ace to tie the game at 13 and an error by Syracuse gave the Bruins their first lead of the set at 14-13. The set continued to be a back-and-forth battle, but Belmont finished on top after a 3-0 run and kill by
Laura Shoopman.
The final set was all Belmont. The team jumped to a quick 10-4 lead off the hot start from the Bruin attackers.
Brooke Gilleland,
Laura Shoopman and
Kamryn Olson each added two kills to start off set three. Belmont continued to control the set the rest of the way never letting the lead get below three. The Bruins would finish the set and match 25-16.
What's Bruin
What's Next
Belmont will hit the road again next weekend to compete in the Terrier Invite hosted by Wofford. The Bruins will face Saint Francis (Pa.) for the second time this season at 8:30 a.m. CT on Friday. The game will be followed by a Friday afternoon matchup versus Presbyterian College at 3:30 p.m. CT. Belmont will conclude the tournament against host Wofford at 12 p.m. CT on Saturday.
Both single match and season tickets are on sale. Season tickets are $50 per seat and include all volleyball home games.
Click here to purchase your single match or season tickets.
Follow Belmont volleyball on social media -
@BelmontVB on Twitter,
@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.
#ItsBruinTime
