The Saint Mary's volleyball team lost its fifth consecutive game yesterday against Manchester College.
The Spartans beat Saint Mary's in four games as they captured the victory and received payment for last year's loss to the Belles.
Saint Mary's was victorious in the first game as they came out ready to play.
They took an early lead in the match by winning game one by a score of 30-26.
This marked only the fifth time all season that the Belles captured the first game, and the first time they failed to win the match after taking game one.
Up one to nothing, the Belles fell behind early in the second game and eventually lost by a score of 30-24.
Things began to rapidly fall apart for Saint Mary's as they were upended 30-21 in the third game and lost the fourth and final contest by a score of 30-25.
The Belles concluded MIAA play on Tuesday as they lost in four games to Olivet College. Saint Mary's officially finished in seventh place in the league and ended up with a record of 5-11.
The Belles' recent loss to Manchester drops them to 5-15 overall on the season, and they have yet to beat a non-conference team.
Saint Mary's still has four more games to play over the weekend, giving them a chance to improve their overall record on the season.
After that, the Belles must prepare themselves for the first round of the MIAA tournament.
The tournament commences next Tuesday.
Because the Belles are in seventh, the first round should be an extremely difficult one for the team to win.
"We have been very honest with ourselves and we feel that every MIAA team we have played against this year is beatable," Michelle Turley said. "In tournament scenarios, any team can win, and our goal is to be that team."
Saint Mary's finishes up its regular season beginning this Friday as it plays four games in two days.
Still winless outside of the MIAA, this is a great opportunity for the Belles to steal their first non-league match and halt their current losing streak.
It is now or never for the Belles.
