Belmont Falls in Four Sets to Vanderbilt
Belmont’s volleyball team had opportunities to upset Vanderbilt University, but two late runs in the third and fourth sets sent the Commodores back across Wedgewood Avenue with a 3-1 win.
Vanderbilt improved to 8-0 on the year, while Belmont became just the third team to avoid being swept by the Commodores, joining Rutgers University and the University of North Carolina, which was ranked No. 13 in the country at the time.
This marked the second-ever volleyball match between Belmont and Vanderbilt after last year’s match on Wyatt’s Lawn, Vanderbilt’s first volleyball match in 45 years. The rematch, part of the Nashville Showcase featuring Belmont, Vanderbilt and Lipscomb, didn’t disappoint.
Belmont held late leads against its crosstown rival, but watched them slip away as Vanderbilt ultimately pulled away with a 7-0 run to close the third set and a 10-0 run to end the match in four sets in front of a program-record crowd of 642.
“I thought we played very composed volleyball against a very good team,” said Bruins head coach Fritz Rosenberg. “You can see we’re capable of doing it consistently over four sets, and I thought we did a good job for three-and-a-half of those sets.”
Senior Brenna Kauffeld echoed Rosenberg’s message of composure.
“A big thing for us was keeping our composure during the game, and we definitely did that,” said Kauffeld. “Hanging right there with an SEC team is awesome, and we’ve just been working really hard, so it’s awesome to see all of our hard work come together.”
In the first set, Belmont did more than just hang around, winning 25-20.
With a 1-0 advantage, the Bruins became the first team to lead Vanderbilt at any point this season and held the Commodores to their fewest points of the season.
Vanderbilt responded with a vengeance, winning the second set 25-21 with 19 kills.
Now tied at one set apiece, winning the third set would be pivotal for controlling the match.
The Bruins held a 20-18 advantage late in the set when Vanderbilt challenged a call on an attack error that would have given Belmont a 21-18 lead.
The challenge was unsuccessful, but coming out of the break, the Commodores rattled off seven straight points to stun Belmont and win the third set.
That set up a crucial fourth set for the Bruins, who now found themselves down two sets to one and their margin of error shrinking.
Belmont held a 17-15 lead after a Vanderbilt service error, which gave senior Connie Kofoed the serve and the Bruins a chance to extend their lead.
However, six kills, two Belmont attack errors, a block assist and an ace propelled the Commodores to a 10-0 run and a 25-17 win.
Rosenberg said the difference between the teams late in sets boiled down to serving.
“I think Vanderbilt’s one of the best serving teams we’ve played all year, and they had two servers go on really long runs against us, so it’s just about being able to solve that a little bit sooner,” said Rosenberg.
While there were a record number of fans in attendance, two notable Bruins joined them watching from the sidelines for most of the match.
Sophomore Jordan Czajkowski, a member of the 2025 Missouri Valley Conference All-Freshman Team, didn’t appear until Vanderbilt led 22-17 in the fourth set. In her freshman year, Czajkowski started 27 times in 28 matches.
Despite setting a new career-high in assists earlier in the season with 51, Czajkowski was replaced in the rotation by junior Alivia Keegan. Keegan played all four sets and registered 38 assists, five kills, three digs and an ace.
“I think Liv’s been playing really good in practice, and they’ve both been playing really well, so it’s been a very close battle for those two,” said Rosenberg. “But I think Liv, right now, has been running a really good offense.”
Another notable absence for the Bruins was junior Alexia Smollen, who has appeared in all but three sets so far this season, but didn’t appear against Vanderbilt.
Smollen, the MVC’s leader in total blocks this season, was replaced in the rotation by junior Lucy Kay.
Kay, who had played in 15 of 40 total sets heading into the Vanderbilt match, finished with six kills and a block assist in four sets of play.
“She’s changed from the right side to the middle, and she’s been practicing hard the last couple of weeks to kind of re-play the middle,” said Rosenberg. “She’s played middle before. I just thought she was going to bring something different tonight.”
Belmont now turns its focus to Saturday’s Battle of the Boulevard home match against Lipscomb.
While Lipscomb squares off against Vanderbilt on Friday night, the Bruins will have the day to prepare for their rival.
“Coming off a win last year, obviously we want to go out there and get it again, but we know that we have some work to do still,” said Kauffeld. “We’re excited to get after it one more time in practice tomorrow and show them what we’ve been working on.”
This article was written by Sam Dicus
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