LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The Bellarmine University volleyball team put up a valiant effort on Saturday afternoon but came up short in a battle with Cincinnati, falling 3-0 in the Bellarmine Classic finale at Knights Hall.
 
The Knights were led by sophomore duo Natalie Bland and Maddie Hagan on offense as they tallied eight kills each. Bland added five digs while Hagan contributed a block and hit .316. Senior Jayda Harris and sophomore Erika Smith turned in five kills each with Harris putting up three blocks and Smith adding one. Grad student Mara Perry was just one dig shy of tying her career-high, tallying 19 on the day.
 
With the loss, Bellarmine moves to 1-5 on the year while the win moves Cincinnati to 4-2 this season.
 
Set 1
The first set started in back-and-forth fashion with the score tied 5-5 early. Cincinnati then turned up the heat, ripping off five straight points to take a 10-6 lead as the Knights called their first time out of the set. While the Bearcats continued to hold a lead, Bellarmine stayed strong and battled to get back within two, down 13-11 before Cincinnati went on a 6-3 run to extend the lead to five at 19-14 as BU used its final time out of the stanza. Out of the break, the Knights continued to chip away, getting all the way back to within two, down 23-21 as they forced Cincinnati to call its first timeout. The break didn't slow the Bellarmine attack as the Knights scored three of four points to tie the match 24-24 as the Bearcats used their final timeout of the set. This time, the break worked in Cincinnati's favor as they took the final two points to claim the first game 26-24.
 
Set 2
Bellarmine came out on the attack in the second set, taking an early 5-1 lead. The lead didn't last long however as Cincinnati rallied for a 5-0 run to take a 6-5 lead. The Bearcats continued to push the pace as the gained control, extending the lead to three at 10-7 as Bellarmine used its first timeout. The Bearcats stayed hot out of the break, scoring the first three points to go up 13-7 but the Knights rallied, going on a 5-2 run to cut the lead back to three, still down 15-12, and forced Cincinnati to use its first time out. With Cincinnati unwavering, the Knights used their final timeout of the set down five at 22-17. The call came at the right time though as Bellarmine clawed back, going on a 4-0 run to get within one, down 22-21, as the Bearcats called their final time out of the stanza. The match went back-and-forth from there before Cincinnati finally claimed the final point for a 25-23 win.
 
Set 3
Set three was all Cincinnati from the first serve. The Bearcats jumped out to a 10-5 early lead as BU called its first timeout of the set. Cincinnati scored three of four points out of the break to extend its lead to 13-6 as the Knights called their second and final time out. The Bearcats continued to pile on after that, going on to win the set 25-14 and take the match 3-0.
 
Up next, Bellarmine will travel to Edwardsville, Il. for its final multi-team event of the regular season on Sep. 13-14. The Knights will face off against Murray State, Chattanooga and host SIUE.
 
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