Belmont Edges UAB 3-2 At Bruin Classic

Saturday, September 21

Nashville, Tenn.

6:00 PM

UAB

Belmont

Belmont Edges UAB 3-2 At Bruin Classic

9/21/2013 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball

Sept. 21, 2013

Final Stats | Final Stats

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The UAB volleyball team (11-5) fell to Belmont (7-9) in its second five set match of the day at the Bruin Classic. It is the first time this season that the Blazers have lost two matches in a row.

Sophomore Sam Skinner put down 24 kills for the second-straight match to lead UAB. Skinner was named to the All-Tournament team for her performance over the weekend. Two more Blazers notched double-digits, with senior Ally Slaughter landing 11 kills for her season-high and junior Kiriana Hirini had 10.

Notching her sixth double-double of the season was senior Becca Howard. Howard served up a career-high 56 helpers and added 11 digs against the Bruins. Fellow senior Rachel Fairbanks led the team with 24 digs, while Hirini had a team-high six blocks on the night.

In the opening set, UAB stormed out to a 7-0 lead to force Belmont to take an early timeout. The Blazers kept a comfortable lead throughout the set and finished it up with a 25-13 win to take a 1-0 lead.

Belmont, this weekend's tournament host and champion, tied the match up at 1-1 after winning the second set. The Bruins grabbed the lead from the beginning and held on to take the win 25-21.

The Blazers countered with a third set victory. The teams were tied at 10-10 and a 5-0 run pushed the Green and Gold up 15-10. Later in the set a 4-0 run added to its lead and UAB went on to win 25-17, giving it a 2-1 lead.

Then it was Belmont who went on a run of its own in the fourth set, taking a 16-11 lead that UAB was unable to recover from. The Bruins tied the match up 2-2 with a 25-19 win in the fourth set.

Belmont carried its momentum from the fourth set, taking a 9-6 lead but UAB fought back to tie the set up at 10-10. From there, it was a battle as the teams traded points. The Bruins were able to pull away just enough and closed on the match with a 15-13 win in the final set.

The Blazers will return to Bartow Arena this week to open conference play. They will host Southern Miss on Friday, Sept. 27 at 7 p.m. and Tulsa on Sunday, Sept. 29 at 12 p.m. CT.

For the latest news on Blazer sports, follow the UAB Athletics Twitter account: @UABathletics. For volleyball news, follow @UAB_VB.