"This is about Tennessee, they played really, really well tonight so congratulations to them", said head coach Travis Hudson. "I hope they feel like this was one of the better matches they've played all year. You come to the [NCAA] Tournament to find out who you are, Tennessee was better than us today, but I am so proud of our kids."
The match also marked career 1,000 kills for junior transfer Kaylee Cox. Cox hit 10 kills off of a .174 clip, while fifth-year Paige Briggs shot 15 kills on the pin off of a .243 hitting mark in her last match as a Hilltopper. The two-time All-American finished her career third all-time in career kills, second all-time in career attempts, and owns two program records in single-match kills and aces.
[6] WKU 0, [3] Tennessee 3: 20-25, 16-25, 24-25
Set 1
The Tops picked up a quick two in a row after Tennessee's Jenaisya Moore picked up a kill from the outside for the first point of the match. The Tops and Lady Vols would rally up the scoreboard to tie it at four apiece, until UT drove on 3-0 and took a heavy lead. WKU would rally back until the host would push out another three straight for a six-point set onto the media timeout. Into the second half of the set, the Tops would rally out a 8-3 scoring drive with kills from Coyle, Cox, and Briggs to bring about a one-point frame. UT's Moore shot another ball to the back court, followed up by a Hilltopper error to hit 20 points on the board first. The Tops grinded back on the board, but a 4-1 run from the team in orange would cap the first frame at 25-20.
Set 2
After the Lady Vols stuffed one on defense at the net, freshman middle hitter Izzy Van De Wiele picked up her first kill of the evening for a quick, 1-1 start. After back-to-back service errors on the court, a Lady Vols hitting error would strike up the first set lead for the Red and White. The two teams would volley back-and-forth picking up seven set ties until UT ran on three in a row for a two-point set. With Cameron Mosley serving, Tennessee's Morgahn Fingall would kick start a hefty 11-4 scoring run against the Tops defense, picking up one away from set point. WKU would pick back, Paige Briggs hitting a kill down for the 15th point followed up by a UT service error, but the host continue their lead in the set and the match after two.
Set 3
A kill to the left line off the hand of Izzy Van De Wiele would give the Tops their first point won of a set, all match. After shifting points on the board, WKU would gain a slight lead from a cross-court kill from Kenadee Coyle and Lady Volunteer error. After going back-and-forth on the court with three set ties, Tennessee would stronghold the Tops up five points from a 4-0 run, forcing head coach Travis Hudson to burn a timeout. Out of the break, both opponents would each take two points of their own before Kaylee Cox and the Hilltoppers dug down for a comeback 5-0 run to tie the game. The Red and White would lift from being tied at 16 apiece and kick off four straight featuring a pair of kills from Paige Briggs and forcing head coach Eve Rackham-Watt to use a timeout. The Tops and Lady Vols would carry out 3-0 runs on each side as WKU would near set point at 22-19. Jenaisya Moore and UT would eventually garner three straight kills from the left, bringing about the first match point. In fitting fashion, Paige Briggs would slam down the final point for WKU, until a kill and service ace for Tennessee would lead them into the next round of the tournament.
POST-MATCH NOTES
- WKU started Callie Bauer, Paige Briggs, Kaylee Cox, Kenadee Coyle, Logan Grevengoed, Izzy Van De Wiele, and freshman Abby Schaefer in at libero.
- The Tops swept the Lady Vols in their last meeting in 2022, a mid-week match inside Thompson-Boling Arena. Tennessee now leads the all-time series, 4-1.
- The Hilltoppers clinched the CUSA regular-season title going a perfect 16-0 in league play. It is their fifth-straight regular-season championship and ninth of 10 possible regular-season championships since joining the league.
- WKU owns 24 consecutive 20-win seasons. After Florida failed to win 20 matches this season, the Tops now own the largest active streak in the nation.
- On offense, Paige Briggs led the match for the Red and White with 15 kills, followed by Kaylee Cox with 10, and Kenadee Coyle with five. From the service line, both Cox and Katie Howard each picked up an ace.
- Coyle, Callie Bauer, and Logan Grevengoed all stuffed two blocks at the net, totaling for the Tops four.
- WKU has been in the NCAA Tournament for the last five straight years, earning a win in each. The Hilltoppers now own an all-time record in the NCAA Tournament at 9-17.
How to Follow WKU Volleyball: For complete information on WKU Volleyball, follow the team on Twitter at @WKUVolleyball and head coach Travis Hudson at @TravisHudsonWKU. The team is also on Instagram and Facebook.
