JACKSON, Miss. – The Belhaven volleyball team dropped a thriller at Rugg Arena on Friday, falling in five sets to Loyola. The Blazers have now dropped their last four Southern States Athletic Conference matches and four of their last five overall.
 
The Blazers (9-10, 1-7 SSAC0 took the first set 25-16, but the Wolfpack took the next two by scores of 25-23 and 25-15. Belhaven forced the decisive fifth set after winning the fourth 25-23, but Loyola (7-10, 3-5 SSAC) prevailed 15-11 in the final set.
 
"We got beat in the serving game. When you serve eight more out than you get aces, you're not going to win," Head Coach Justin Dee said. "I was appreciative of the effort the girls gave, but I would like to have seen a little more."
 
Individually, Molly Boyer and Blaykleigh Smythe tied one another for the team lead in kills with 13, while Taylor Hall added another ten. Kelly Aholt and Alyson Plyler combined to assist on 48 of the team's 51 kills, while Jackie Rhyne led all players with 29 digs.
 
Loyola's Eva Allen led her team with 14 kills, while Tiffany Walker followed with 13 of her own. Becca Burnett was the premiere defensive specialist, tallying 26 digs, and Daniela Leal was credited with a remarkable 38 assists.
 
Belhaven now turns their attention to the University of Mobile (15-2, 7-1 SSAC), who landed in the receiving votes category in the Coaches' Poll last week. The match is set to begin at 1:00 pm from Rugg Arena.  
 
"On paper, they're a great team that should probably beat us, and they'll require our best effort," Dee said. "We have to focus on the things we can do well."