NOTRE DAME, Ind. - The Saint Mary's volleyball team earned a 3-2 (25-19, 25-20, 23-25, 24-26, 15-10) conference win over Olivet on Tuesday night. 

 

The Belles stormed out to a 7-0 lead in the opening set on kills by Mia Shields, Colleen McCarthy, Cali Allen, and Grace Braselton along with a block by Shields and Braselton. Olivet pulled within two points late in the set at 18-16, but back-to-back attack errors by the Comets followed by a service ace by Cali Allen pushed the Belles ahead 21-16. Remington Vincent served an ace to give Saint Mary's set-point a short while later, and Grace Braselton put away a kill two points later for the 25-19 win as Braselton posted a .444 attack percentage in the opening stanza.

 

The second set featured eight ties early on as the two sides played almost point for point. Down 9-6, the Belles were sparked by a Sam Vorderer kill as Saint Mary's used a 5-0 run to build an 11-9 lead. After ties at 11-11 and 12-12, the Belles capitalized on an Olivet mistake and a Shay Theile kill for a 14-12 advantage. Four quick points - started by another Vorderer kill - put the home side up 19-14. Olivet edged within four points, but Saint Mary's ensured the Comets got any closer as the Belles took the set 25-20.

 

The third set saw neither side have larger than a four-point lead at any given moment as the two sides were tied nine times while the lead changed hands on five occasions. The Belles looked to have the momentum late in the set after three consecutive service aces by Shay Theile put Saint Mary's ahead 20-14. The teams traded points back-and-forth before the Belles went up 22-17. An Olivet kill followed by consecutive attack errors by the home side, however, gave the Comets a burst of momentum to make it a 22-20 score. The Comets tacked on another point after a Saint Mary's timeout before Colleen McCarthy put away a kill for a 23-21 lead. Olivet, however, responded with a kill and took advantage of a miscue by the Belles to tie the score at 23-23. Back-to-back Olivet kills gave the Comets the set at 25-23.

 

Olivet used that momentum shift to take an early lead in the fourth set, but Saint Mary's chipped away at the Comets before taking a 21-18 lead. The Belles used another McCarthy kill to go ahead 22-19. An error on the next play followed by a block by Olivet and another Saint Mary's miscue tied the score at 22-22 as the Belles called a timeout. A long rally on the next point went Olivet's way before Sam Vorderer tied the score at 23-23 with a kill. The Comets pulled ahead at 24-23, but Mia Shields had the answer this time with a kill to knot the score yet again. Olivet again put away a kill, and a hitting error by the Belles saw the Comets take the set 26-24 to force the deciding fifth set.

 

A kill by Cali Allen jump-started a five-point run by the Belles in the fifth frame. Mia Shields put away a kill, Courtney Pelletier followed the kill with an ace, Shay Theile and Allen put down a block, and Pelletier had another ace for a 6-2 lead. The Comets pulled within two points at 7-5. Consecutive hitting errors by Olivet pushed the Saint Mary's advantage to four points at 9-5. Allen had a pair of aces split by a McCarthy kill for a 12-5 lead. McCarthy tacked on another kill, and Mia Shields closed out the set and the match with a kill from the right side for a 15-10 win in the deciding set. 

 

The Belles' 17 aces is tied for the second-most aces in an MIAA match. Additionally, Saint Mary's posted hitting percentages above .200 in each of the three sets won in the victory.

 

Mia Shields had 13 kills and two block assists, and Cali Allen added 13 kills, 14 digs, four aces, and a block. Colleen McCarthy collected 12 kills, 19 digs, a block, and an ace. Grace Braselton put away eight kills and three blocks. Sam Vorderer chipped in five kills with no attack errors on the night and a block. Courntey Pelletier shared match-high honors with 19 digs while serving up three aces. Remington Vincent had a match-high five aces to go along with 25 assists and 15 digs. Karla Rigan posted 20 assists and eight digs. Shay Theile added four aces, four kills, six digs, and two blocks.

 

The Belles (5-14, 1-5 MIAA) have a break from conference play this upcoming weekend as Saint Mary's travels to Georgia to take part in the Emory Classic on Friday and Saturday. Saint Mary's opens play on Friday at 4:00 p.m. against host Emory.