Saint Mary's fell 6-0 to No. 15 Indiana Wesleyan Sunday, as the Belles were unable to put a halt to the Wildcats' 8-0 record.
Belles coach Dale Campbell, though, said the tough competition would provide Saint Mary's invaluable experience heading into conference play.
"We gave our best effort, but we made too many errors against an opponent this strong," Campbell said. "They were more consistent and hit better volleys in doubles to gain an early lead on us."
Campbell said that the Wildcats well-rounded squad made them a very difficult matchup for the Belles.
"They were solid throughout their lineup," Campbell said. "Their players were consistent off the ground and volleyed sharply."
The high point of this match for the Belles was the number two singles match between junior captain Camille Gebert and Indiana Wesleyan's Lisa Massey, which Gebert lost in the tie-breaker round.
As a very young team, the Belles have been seeing diverse competition throughout the course of this season. The team consists of all sophomores and one junior captain, Gebert.
"This team is gaining experience and should only get better in matches to come," Campbell said. "We expect to win a lot of matches and do well in our conference."
The Belles' next match is on the road against Alma on Mar. 28, which opens MIAA conference play for both teams. In practices this week, Campbell said his team will be working on different things to help their chances of beginning this season's conference games with a win.
"We want to continue to improve our doubles play, our movement, and get off to a good start in our next match," said Campbell. "All we can do is control the way we play, not our opponents." In terms of team morale, this weekend's setback from Indiana Wesleyan will not be entirely detrimental to the team's mission.
"Our team has a great attitude, understands that they have to work hard to improve every day, and that hard work will pay off."
