Lady Vols grab first win at NCAA Tournament – Volleyball News
The Thompson-Boling Arena in Tennessee University hosted the NCAA Championship's opening match on Thursday, December 1. The 14th-seeded Tennessee volleyball team put up a strong effort and gave what the home audience wanted. They posted a 3-1
(25-15, 23-25, 25-19, 25-16) victory over the visiting team from Duke University. The Lady Volunteers of Tennessee had stupendous support of local fans, who gathered to cheer the orange clad team. Around 1,552 spectators witnessed the match and it marked the
seventh-highest home attendance in the program history.
With the initial victory, the Lady Vols earned the tickets to the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the third consecutive year. Overall, Lady Vols cleared the first stage of the tournament for ninth time. In the next run, they will take on Ohio State
volleyball team, which downed the MTSU in their respective first round match. The second round will be opened on Friday, December 2.
Set 1
In the opening set, freshman Shealyn Kolosky and Brice delivered quick serves and managed to land some aces in opponent’s half. Meanwhile, Kolosky, Robinson and Baker formed a strong offence and added a flurry of points. Lady Vols led the game 13-6 before
the second technical timeout. Duke’s McCurdy and Kirk struggled to level the score through counter-attacks but UT kept the operations well under hand and did not allow the Devils to come up. First set ended in Tennessee’s favour at 25-15.
Set 2
Second set was closely contested from start till end. The Lady Vols played with remarkable consistency after winning the first set, while Blue Devils hit back strongly to cover the deficit. Long rallies were exchanged and score shifted up with close gap.
The hosts started off with 4-2 lead before Duke earned one-point advantage at 5-4. An attack error put UT in lead at 9-7, which they maintained until tie of score at 19-all. The game of hit ‘n’ run continued till the end and Blue Devils emerged as the winners
of second set at 25-23.
Set 3
UT bounced back in the third set and regained the control of the game. The Duke played well but could not overcome the opponents. Tennessee team closed third set with 25-19 win.
Set 4
Harrison and Baker staged an eye-catching action of volleyball in the fourth set and led Lady Vols with better score. The home team captured fourth set (25-16) and put an end to the game, 3-1.
The mentor of Duke, Jolene Nagel, said was disappointed with the loss of important match. She disclosed her thoughts in the following manner: "I think the biggest disappointment for this team is that it's the last time they get a chance to play with each
other and compete as a team. They really were all in, as far as trying to get this match tonight. It's been like that throughout the year, and I think it's been a really special team, whether they were on the court or on the sideline.”
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