Kentucky Volleyball Sweeps Cal Poly in Dominant Sweet 16 Win

Holy Moly! Kentucky absolutely smoked Cal Poly in the Sweet 16. We knew there was some sweep potential ahead of this matchup, but the Kentucky volleyball team took it to another level on Thursday.

After controlling the first two sets (25-18, 25-19), it felt like the Cats could keep it in cruise control and bring home a nice three-set win. Nope. Craig Skinner’s squad went all gas, no brakes, to clinch the win.

Trinity Ward was dialed in, serving bombs to Cal Poly as Kentucky went on a 10-0 run to blitz the Mustangs in a 25-7 third-set rout. Twenty-Five to Seven. WOW.

Kentucky hit .419 as a team, but nobody was more effective than Lizzie Carr. The 6-foot-6 redshirt junior from West Chester, PA, completely owned the middle of the floor. She had six kills in the first set alone, and finished the night with 11 on only 15 attacks. She also put down a team-high six blocks in the Wildcats’ win.

Get the Daily On3 Newsletter in your inbox every morning

By clicking "Subscribe to Newsletter", I agree to On3's Privacy Notice, Terms, and use of my personal information described therein.

Wildcats are on a ROLL 👏#NCAAWVB x 🎥 ESPN2 / @KentuckyVB pic.twitter.com/34OgX4grhQ
— NCAA Women's Volleyball (@NCAAVolleyball) December 11, 2025

SEC Player of the Year Eva Hudson had nine kills and seven digs for the Cats. Brooklyn DeLeye, last year’s SEC Player of the Year, was just as effective, tallying eight kills and eight digs, one behind Molly Tuozzo‘s team-leading nine digs in the back of the defense.

The Kentucky volleyball team is on an absolute roll. The second-ranked Wildcats have only dropped one set through three NCAA Tournament games. Kentucky just won its 25th-straight game, setting a new program record. Now, the Wildcats are one win away from returning to the Final Four for the first time since 2020 and just the second time in program history. They’ll take on No. 3 seed Creighton in the Elite Eight on Saturday at 5 PM ET inside Historic Memorial Coliseum.

KEntucky volleyball celebrates a point, via Aaron Perkins, KSR — Kentucky volleyball celebrates a point, via Aaron Perkins, KSR

Eva Hudson scores for Kentucky volleyball in the NCAA Tournament, via Aaron Perkins, KSR

The Kentucky volleyball team at Historic Memorial Coliseum, via Aaron Perkins, KSR

Want more coverage of the Cats? Join KSR+

KSR has been delivering UK Sports news in the most ridiculous manner for almost two decades. Now, you can get even more coverage of the Cats with KSR+. In the middle of a pressure-packed Kentucky basketball season for Mark Pope, now is the perfect time to join our online community. Subscribe now for premium articles, in-depth scouting reports, inside intel, bonus recruiting coverage, and access to KSBoard, our message board featuring thousands of Kentucky fans around the globe. Come join the club.