NOTRE DAME, Ind. - Saint Mary's College Volleyball returns home to host Kalamazoo College on Wednesday before traveling to take on North Central College in a single road match.
The Belles return to the Angela Athletic & Wellness Complex after going 3-1 last week including a 2-1 performance at the Manchester Invite. Saint Mary's welcomed Benedictine University in for the home opener on September 10 and finished the night with a 3-0 sweep of the Eagles. The Belles then went to tackle the Manchester Invite over the weekend and came home ecstatic.
Saint Mary's finished the tournament with a 2-1 record. After an early loss to Franklin College on Friday, 3-1, the Belles bounced back with a Saturday sweep as they took down the host Manchester University. 3-2, and fellow MIAA member Alma College, 3-0. The win over Manchester was the first for the program since 2018. The performance by the Belles brought two All-Tournament honors as junior Grace Braselton and sophomore Caroline Carens were awarded the honor.
Carens continued to see the awards pour in as she was named the MIAA Player of the Week and was named the Belles Co-Athlete of the Week. She tallied 45 kills over the four matches last week, averaging 3 kills per set in the 15 total sets the Belles played last week. Carens also recorded 11 blocks and had a .393 hitting percentage including three matches above .300 and two above .400. Carens currently ranks 50th in the nation in hitting percentage with her season average at .360.
Saint Mary's is off to its best start since 2012 when they opened the season with a 6-2 record in their first eight matches.The Belles currently sit at 6-2 on the year and have six more non-conference matches before they open MIAA play on October 1 at Alma. The Belles will also host Beloit College on October 6 for the final non-conference match of the year. The Belles are looking to make a push towards the MIAA Tournament as conference play comes closer as they have not participated in the conference championships since 2017.
The Belles are being led by Carens in kills with 80, hitting percentage at .360, and blocks with 20, sophomore Abby Reese in total assists with 178, senior Cali Allen in service aces with 19, and junior Karli Fegan in digs with 137.
Kalamazoo Hornets
The Hornets come into Wednesday's match with a 6-6 record after going 1-2 at the Ginny Hunt Kilt Classic last weekend. They are led by Brittany Miller in kills with 127, Savannah Chapie in hitting percentage at .318 and blocks with 25, Jana Molby in assists with 137, and Lizzy Rachiele in digs with 152.
North Central Cardinals
The Cardinals come into Friday's match with a 6-4 record after going 3-1 at the Coe/Cornell Tournament over the weekend with a win over #21 Cornell College. They are led by Abbi Barickman in kills with 135, Riley Clark in hitting percentage with .326, Maddi Barickman in assists with 340, Bailey Houlihan in digs with 178, and Amber Vande Hei in blocks with 16.