Belmont Volleyball Set for Nashville Rivalry Weekend

Belmont vs. Vanderbilt  
Thursday, Sept. 17 | 6 p.m. CT 

Belmont vs. Lipscomb 
Saturday, Sept. 17 | 5 p.m. CT 
Curb Event Center | Nashville, Tenn.  

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Belmont University volleyball team (3-6) returns home this week for a pair of Nashville crosstown clashes, hosting Vanderbilt Thursday, Sept. 17, at 6 p.m. at the Curb Event Center before welcoming Lipscomb Saturday, Sept. 19, at 5 p.m. for the annual Battle of the Boulevard. 

Thursday's matchup with Vanderbilt comes nearly a year after the Commodores played their first match in 45 years at Wyatt Lawn to open the 2025 season, defeating Belmont 3-1 on Aug. 29, 2025. 

Belmont then renews its Battle of the Boulevard rivalry with Lipscomb on Saturday. The Bruins earned a 3-1 victory at Lipscomb last season, marking Belmont's first win over the Bison since 2015. 

Both matches will stream live on ESPN+, while live statistics will be available at GoBelmontBruins.com. 

What's Bruin 

• Belmont enters the weekend 3-6 following a three-match road trip to North Carolina, earning a four-set victory over Marshall before falling to Duke and NC State.  
• Brenna Kauffeld was named Belmont's September Student-Athlete of the Month.  
• Kauffeld leads the Bruins with 106 kills, followed by Emily Warmenhoven with 98 and Connie Kofoed with 97.  
• Kofoed recorded a career-high 18 kills in Belmont's four-set victory over Marshall.  
• Alexia Smollen leads Belmont and the Missouri Valley Conference with 41 blocks.  
• Erin McMullen leads the MVC with a .409 hitting percentage, while adding 91 kills and 24 blocks.  
• Kauffeld and McMullen were named to the Weber State Wildcat Invitational All-Tournament Team.  
• Jordan Czajkowski leads the Bruins with 247 assists and has added 69 digs.  
• Junior DS/libero Lauren Evans leads the Bruins with 15 service aces. The Butler transfer also ranks among Belmont's newcomers.  
• Sophomore DS/libero Mya Bolton, a transfer from Michigan State, leads the Bruins with 134 digs.  
• Freshman outside hitter Sydnee Nelson has recorded at least one kill in three of her first four matches, including a career-high five kills against Duke.  
• Belmont leads the Missouri Valley Conference with 504 kills, followed by Bradley with 475. 
• The Bruins enter the 2026 season with a challenging schedule that includes eight opponents ranked among the Top 100.  
• Belmont was picked fourth in the Missouri Valley Conference Preseason Poll, tying with UIC.  
• The Bruins return MVC All-Freshman Team selections Erin McMullen and Jordan Czajkowski, both of whom earned MVC Freshman of the Week honors during the 2025 season.  
• Belmont finished the 2025 season 17-11 overall and 8-8 in MVC play, finishing sixth in the conference standings. The Bruins fell to Drake in five sets in the first round of the MVC Tournament.  
• Belmont is led by second-year head coach Fritz Rosenberg, assistant coach Delaney Gallagher and newly hired assistant coach Sean Cahill.  
• The Bruins have made four NCAA Tournament appearances (2006, 2008, 2012 and 2015) and twice pushed nationally ranked Louisville to four sets in the NCAA Tournament (2012, 2015).  
• Belmont's program history includes signature wins over Mississippi State, Marquette, Virginia Tech, UCF, West Virginia, Boston College, Syracuse, DePaul and UConn. 

About the Commodores  

• Vanderbilt enters the weekend 7-0 following a four-set victory over No. 18 North Carolina, marking the program's first win over a ranked opponent.  
• Following the victory, Vanderbilt received votes in the AVCA Coaches Poll for the first time in program history.  
• Senior Samantha Wunsch was named TSWA Player of the Week on Sept. 15 after recording 18 kills while hitting .510 against North Carolina.  
• Junior setter Avery Scoggins was named SEC Setter of the Week on Aug. 31.  
• Vanderbilt finished the 2025 season 9-18 overall and 3-12 in SEC play.  
• The Commodores are led by head coach Anders Nelson, who began with the program's restart and led Vanderbilt onto the court for its first match in 45 years in 2025.  
• Vanderbilt played its first home match in 45 years against Belmont on Aug. 29, 2025, defeating the Bruins 3-1 at Wyatt Lawn. 

About the Bison  

• Lipscomb enters the weekend 5-2 following a reverse-sweep victory over Washington State. 
• The Bison also own notable victories over Florida State and a set victory over No. 16 Kansas. 
• Junior setter Kelsey Schenck has earned back-to-back ASUN Setter of the Week honors. Schenck leads Lipscomb with 276 assists and has added 11 service aces. 
• Lipscomb is led by Sarah Baldwin, who enters her first season as head coach and fourth overall season with the program after previously serving as an assistant coach. 
• The Bison finished the 2025 season 14-13 overall and 10-6 in ASUN play, finishing fifth in the conference standings. 
• Belmont earned a 3-1 victory at Lipscomb last season, marking the Bruins' first Battle of the Boulevard victory over the Bison since 2015.  

Follow along 

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 Belmont athletic programs via the official Belmont Bruins app, available in the Apple App Store and on Google Play.