EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – SIUE volleyball picked up their eighth Ohio Valley Conference win by defeating Belmont 25-23, 25-18, 26-28, 25-21.

The Cougars improved to 13-12 overall with an 8-5 record in OVC play.

Hope Everett sparked the Cougar offense with 17 kills and a .667 hitting percentage. The Cougar sophomore hit .459 for the week.

"Hope had a really great match today," noted Head SIUE Volleyball Coach Kendall Paulus.

Everett contributed 17 of the Cougars overall 57 kills. Others contributing include Rachel McDonald with 10 and Kiana Fields with eight.

McDonald also notched a double-double on the afternoon. In addition to her 10 kills, she also recorded 19 digs.

"Today's win was a team effort," commented Paulus. "Everyone had a specific role that played a huge part in the success we saw in this match."

The team tallied 73 digs in the four-set match up. McDonald and Jordyn Klein both led the team defensively with 19 digs each. Dylynn Otte also contributed with 14 digs of her own.

SIUE recorded seven blocks on the afternoon. Junior Annie Ellis was the driving force behind the Cougars defensive efforts by assisting four blocks.

The team also notched seven service aces. "We served really tough today, which is a strong point for us," added Paulus. "It was nice to see us come out and be aggressive with our serves."

SIUE now will finish out the regular season at home with two contests at First Community Arena at the Vadalabene Center. The Cougars play Southeast Missouri Friday at 6 p.m. followed by UT Martin Saturday at 2 p.m.