Kentucky VB Completes Epic Comeback vs. Texas to Win SEC Tournament

In a match full of jaw-dropping plays, momentum swings, and championship grit, top-seeded Kentucky roared back from a 2-0 deficit to take down No. 3 Texas in a five-set thriller, clinching the 2025 SEC Volleyball Tournament title in Savannah, GA.

“It just wasn’t any one thing,” said head coach Craig Skinner. “It was a cumulation of several.”

A complete team effort and multiple standout performances across the board fueled Kentucky’s championship run. Tuesday’s win marked the Wildcats’ second reverse sweep of the season, the first coming against Oklahoma just 11 days ago.

Eva Hudson led her team with 25 kills on .300 hitting, four digs, 11 blocks, and two aces, while Lizzie Carr anchored the frontline with 13 kills on .414 hitting and a team-high nine blocks. Brooklyn DeLeye posted 13 kills and 11 digs, and Asia Thigpen tallied a season-high 10 kills on .500 and four blocks, providing fire alongside Brooke Bultema, who added eight crucial kills down the stretch and two blocks off the bench. Setter Kassie O’Brien led the offense with an outstanding 56 assists, 11 digs, three blocks, and three kills, orchestrating her team throughout the match.

Anchoring the defence was SEC Tournament MVP Molly Tuozzo, who put up 16 digs and seven assists, delivering an all-around complete performance with clutch plays and leadership to help her team secure the title.

Texas controlled almost all of the first set, taking an early 6-2 lead as Kentucky struggled with sloppy serve-recieve and an overall slow start on the night. The Cats worked to reset with a powerful DeLeye kill following an early timeout, but the Longhorns continued to answer every UK push. A long rally highlighted tough defense from either side before Hudson hammered home a back-row kill to keep the Cats within reach, but passing issues kept them from catching up. Despite a late push from Tuozzo with incredible digs and a small 2-0 surge sparked by Carr, the Longhorns stayed in control as the aggressor and closed the first set 25-19.

The Wildcats burst into the second set with a 3-0 run behind a hot Hudson, who helped her team to a 7-3 lead before a massive O’Brien and Carr block. A long rally, kept alive by intense efforts, was ended by Carr and Thigpen, forcing a Texas timeout at 9-4. The Cats’ block came alive, with back-to-back Hudson kills and relentless defensive effort from Tuozzo. Hudson continued to help her team maintain control with a monster block and several kills, pushing the Wildcats ahead 17-13, but Texas responded with a 3-0 run. Thigpen added another huge block to force a second Texas timeout at 20-16, but the Longhorns refused to back down, pulling to within one late down the stretch at 23-22. The Wildcats couldn’t keep Texas down despite powerful swings from Carr and DeLeye, and in a back-and-forth finish including ties at 23, 24, and 26, the Longhorns ended it at 28-26 on their fourth set point.

Texas carried all the momentum into the third set, surging to a 5-2 lead early and forcing a Cats timeout at 7-2 as the Longhorns fired on all cylinders. Kentucky answered with a 3-0 run, but still couldn’t find a rhythm, especially defending Texas’ quick middle. Bultema tirelessly worked in transition, but a Trinity Ward service error and multiple Wildcat mistakes maintained the gap. A monster kill from Thigpen pulled the Cats within two, and DeLeye then cut it to 20-18, but Kentucky couldn’t find a spark. Down 23-19, Kentucky called another timeout, then came out strong behind a huge Carr and Thigpen block and a late defensive push that forced Texas to call a timeout. With the pressure flipped, the Cats completed the insane comeback and took the set 26-24.

The Cats opened the fourth set with a killer 4-0 burst before Texas responded with a 3-0 run, but a Carr kill calmed things down as the teams traded points back and forth. Hudson kept Kentucky rolling with a back-row strike, and Carr’s fire stretched the lead to 16-12. DeLeye and Hudson continued to light it up as the Cats held control, and a Texas service error, along with a DeLeye ace, forced a Longhorn timeout with Kentucky in the lead 20-15. Bultema hammered home a huge kill, but a Texas run flipped momentum and caused a Kentucky timeout as the Longhorns strung together a 5-0 run before Hudson stopped it at 22-20. Kentucky earned a set point at 24-21 and ended it at 25-22 on a monster Carr kill to send the match to a fifth set.

The Wildcats and Longhorns traded blow-for-blow early in the fifth set, tied at two before a Carr and O’Brien block evened it at three. Thigpen unleashed a huge kill to force a Texas timeout, followed by a monster solo block from Carr to push the Cats’ lead to 6-3. Texas found a small answer, but a service error kept the momentum in Kentucky’s favour as the team continued to trade points. The Wildcats finally found separation late, sparked by a powerful Hudson kill that forced another Texas timeout. Hudson dominated from there, drilling another kill to extend the lead to 14-9 and set up match point, finishing the job with one more monster strike as Kentucky took the set 15-9 and the match.

“We start barking, we start howling,” said Tuozzo. “I think it really showed towards the end of the match in that fight with us.”

With the SEC Tournament title in their hands, Kentucky now turns its attention to the NCAA Tournament, carrying confidence, momentum, and a fully firing roster as the ‘Cats hope to make a deep run and bring a second national championship home to Lexington. The 2025 NCAA Volleyball Selection Show will air this Sunday, November 30, at 6:00 p.m. ET on ESPN.