MARYVILLE, Tenn. – The Belhaven University volleyball team went to Maryville College to compete in a tri-match against Maryville and Piedmont University. The Blazers split the contests on the day and grabbed a massive win over Piedmont on Saturday afternoon. Despite the split, Belhaven moves to 4-9 on the season and 2-1 in conference play.

In the first match of the day, the Blazers fell in a close five set battle with Maryville College (19-25, 25-22, 25-20, 25-12, 6-15).

The Blazers grabbed the 12-8 advantage early on in the set, but the Scots stormed back to grab the 18-13 lead. Maryville held on to the lead for the rest of the set to take the first set 25-19. Belhaven dominated early on going on an 18-9 run to open the second set. Mayville made things interesting late in the set, but the Blazers held on to grab the 25-22 set victory to level the match 1-1.

The Blazers held onto the lead for the majority of the third set, but Maryville cut the lead down to just one point late in the set. Belhaven scored the final four points in the set to take the 25-20 set victory and gain the 2-1 advantage in the match. The Scots dominated the Blazers in the fourth set to earn the 25-12 set victory to force a match deciding fifth-set.

The Blazers held strong with the Scots for the first half of the final set, but Maryville caught an offensive spark and went on an 8-0 run to close out the set and defeat the Blazers 3-2.

Ellie Jones and Rylee White led the Blazers' offense with eight kills apiece, while Jeslian Vazquez posted seven kills in the contest. Defensively, Paige Broussard totaled 19 digs, while Jones led the team with five blocks.

In the second match of the day, the Blazers would bounce back to win a thriller against Piedmont University defeating the Lions in five sets. After falling in a close first set 25-22, Belhaven stormed back to capture victories in second and third set by final scores of 25-13 and 25-20.

After leading the match 2-1, the Lions grabbed the 25-19 fourth set victory to force a fifth set. It took more than 15 points to decide the winner of the match. After the lead changed multiple times, the Blazers held strong to claim the 22-20 set victory and the match 3-2.

Ellie Jones once again led Belhaven's offense with 15 kills, while Rylee White posted 14 kills. Miriam Ateca registered three service aces, 22 digs, and 48 assists in the contest. Additionally, Jones had a team-high five blocks in the five set victory.

The Blazers will return to action on Wednesday, September 28^th against Huntingdon College for the Home Opener inside Rugg Arena. First serve is set for 7:00 p.m.

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