Iowa volleyball concluded its first weekend of action Sunday, sweeping Belmont (25-15, 25-18, 25-15) in the final match of the LUV Invitational in Nashville.

“It was a great total team effort. That was important,” head coach Bond Shymansky said in a release. “Players such as Taylor Louis anchored us with 9 kills on 12 swings. That’s a pretty big number.”

Set 1 started in favor of the Hawkeyes. Louis forced a quick kill, and Iowa took a smooth 6-1 lead before Belmont called a timeout. Freshman Amiya Jones had a good first appearance, locking in a kill for Iowa.

The Bruins came back with a vengeance in Set 2 but were quickly shut down by freshman Hannah Clayton at the net. The Hawkeyes registered 12 assists, 13 kills, and 19 digs to secure the victory. The squad breezed through Set 3 with freshman Maddie Slagle contributing two ace serves.

“I really loved seeing everybody in our program find a way to be significant,” Shymansky said in a release. “Cali Hoye was fantastic, and Maddie Hine was great off of the bench.”

Before taking on Belmont, the Hawkeyes completed their first day of the LUV Invitational, 1-1, on Aug. 25. Iowa took down SMU in its season-opener in four sets (25-17, 21-25, 25-21, 25-18). Later that evening, the squad fell to Lipscomb in five sets (25-13, 20-25, 16-25, 25-18, 15-10).

In the first game against SMU, Iowa launched out of practice mode with a quick kill from Louis. After taking an early lead, the Hawkeyes finished the first set with 2 kills and their first win of the season.

The Mustangs took the second set. Louis bolstered the front row, securing 5 of the 12 kills, and Brie Orr contributed 8 assists.

The Hawkeyes fared better in Set 3 as their mojo returned. After an early tie, Iowa pushed ahead with a 4-point rally. Junior Meghan Buzzario chalked up half the team’s kills with 5. Clayton made her début, chipping in with a block, along with Orr, Louis, and senior Reghan Coyle.

After an early 4-point deficit, Iowa regained the momentum in the fourth set. Louis propelled the squad into a 16-13 lead following back-to-back aces from Clayton. Louis and Buzzerio scored two-thirds of the teams’ kills in the final set with 6 and 5, respectively.

Iowa lost its momentum from Game 1 early against Lipscomb Saturday evening. Orr still made a statement in the first set, registering 6 assists on 9 kills. The Hawkeyes then began to pick up steam with a strong second-set victory. Orr recorded 11 assists, and Molly Kelly notched 4 digs. Iowa secured Set 3 tallying 6 of its 13 blocks for the match.

The Bison answered by taking the lead in the fourth set. Louis nailed 9 more kills, but the Hawkeyes were forced to play a fifth set. After a short volley in the final set, Lipscomb secured the match.

Iowa concluded Day 1 with notable stats from a handful of players. Kelly had a career-high 20 digs against SMU, followed with another career-high 24 digs against Lipscomb. Louis and Coyle were named to the All-Tournament team, and Orr totaled 85 assists on the day. Louis also put up a 0.750 attack percentage, the senior’s career-high.

The Hawkeyes will hit the road again this weekend, traveling to Seattle to face Washington at 8 p.m. Friday and Colorado at 5 p.m. Saturday.