Kentucky VB Tops Tennessee 3-1, Advances to SEC Final

In a heated SEC Tournament semifinal in Savannah, Georgia, No. 1 seed Kentucky volleyball took down No. 4 seed Tennessee once again 3-1 (20-25, 25-22, 25-15, 25-23) to advance to the championship match and play for yet another SEC title.

Kentucky’s win was strung together behind several standout performances across the board. Brooklyn DeLeye led her team with a match-high 22 kills on .370 hitting and 10 digs, while Eva Hudson posted 18 kills, four digs, and three monster blocks. On the frontline, Lizzie Carr had one of her best outings of the season, tallying nine kills on .364 hitting and a team-leading five blocks, and setter Kassie O’Brien orchestrated the offense with 46 assists, eight digs, and three blocks. Anchoring the defence was Molly Tuozzo with an outstanding performance, posting a career-high 25 digs to help her team seal the deal. Off the bench, Jordyn Dailey provided a spark with four kills and two blocks, while Brooke Bultema added three kills and two blocks to assist their team in their all-around complete performance.

Kentucky opened the first set with Hudson swinging confidently, keeping the Cats in it through ties at five, eight, and 11 as O’Brien directed traffic with poise. However, after 10 ties and numerous lead changes midway through the set, Tennessee finally sparked a 4-0 run to take a 14-11 lead. The Cats answered with their own 4-0 run, though, forcing the Vols to regroup before momentum switched once again. A service error by Tuozzo led Tennessee’s defense to step up, help their frontline catch fire and tally back-to-back blocks on DeLeye. Another 5-0 surge by the Lady Vols pushed their lead to 23-18, forcing another Kentucky timeout as the Cats couldn’t find a rhythm. A late 2-0 push from the Wildcats forced a Tennessee timeout at 24-20, but the Vols closed the opening set to take it 25-20.

The second set swung in both directions before Kentucky managed to grasp some control. After Tennessee held an early 4-3 lead followed by a tie at five, a huge dig by Carr and a pair of monster kills from Hudson ignited a 4-0 run from the Cats to take a 10-7 lead, forcing a Vols’ timeout. Carr kept the energy high with a thunderous kill to make it 12-9, but Tennessee strung together a 3-0 run to pull within one, prompting a Cats timeout at 17-16. From there, Kentucky caught fire behind a massive dig from Berezowitz, sparking a 5-0 run to stretch their lead to 22-17 before DeLeye hammered home an explosive kill followed by a huge block from Carr. Tennessee answered with a 3-0 run to force a Kentucky timeout, but a service error by the Vols led Kentucky to take it 25-22, evening the match at one apiece.

The Cats’ trademark volleyball finally roared back to life in the third set, sparked by DeLeye finding every seam on the court. After a 2-1 Vols lead, a long rally kept alive by a tough Berezowitz dig ended by Hudson with a huge kill tied it at three, and Deleye followed with back-to-back perfect placement kills. A 6-1 Wildcats run helped them stretch their lead to 10-6, forcing a Tennessee timeout. DeLeye added a huge dig to fire up the Cats, sparking a 16-9 burst, followed by a powerful Carr block as Kentucky’s backcourt defence caught fire. Another timeout from Tennessee at 17-10 didn’t stop the Cats’ momentum, with Dailey delivering a monster kill followed by a huge block to stretch the lead to 23-14. Another Vols service error closed the set in favour of Kentucky 25-15, with the Cats completely dominating the third set in the Wildcats’ true brand of volleyball.

Kentucky came out full steam ahead in the fourth set, with Hudson scorching the floor from the start and Carr stuffing a monster block to take a 6-2 lead. DeLeye and Hudson continued to throw punches, and an ace by Ward helped the Wildcats push their lead to 11-7. However, Tennessee answered with a 4-0 surge to tie it at 11, grabbing momentum to take a 13-12 advantage as the Wildcats struggled with errors. The Vols rode that energy to a 19-16 lead, forcing Kentucky to call a timeout after yet another 3-0 run. After the break, the Cats rallied behind two monster kills from Bultema and a perfectly placed kill from DeLeye to tie it once again at 19, causing a Vols timeout and flipping the pressure back to them. A tough set from Tuozzo led to a huge kill by DeLeye to push the Cats ahead 22-21 before Hudson set up match point with back-to-back bombs. Hudson sealed it with one final kill, and Kentucky took the set 25-23, capturing the match 3-1 to send them to the SEC Tournament Championship.

The Cats take the court once again, less than 24 hours later, at 7:00 p.m. ET in Savannah, Georgia where they will face the winner of No. 2 Texas A&M vs. No. 3 Texas.

Kentucky carries all the momentum heading into the SEC Tournament title game. The Wildcats once again proved why they are one of the nation’s most elite teams, combining lockdown defense, powerful hitting, and perfect execution down the stretch to stay perfect in SEC play. All eyes will be on the Cats Tuesday night as they look to finish their SEC Tournament run with another championship.