By Stephen Mason
Sometimes they looked dominant, and at times they looked vulnerable; however, the No. 22 Lady Volunteers (3-0) survived day two of the Tennessee Tournament, going 2-0 without dropping a set.
Tennessee vs. Morehead State (3-0)
To start an action-packed Saturday, the Lady Vols set the tone by dominating the Morehead State Eagles. For the second time this season, they completed the sweep, winning 25-16, 25-18, and 25-12.
As a result of playing three matches in just two days, head coach Eve Rackham Watt took the opportunity to rest some of her best players while giving their younger teammates a chance to prove themselves. Kennedi Rogers, who looked dominant in Friday’s game against Colgate, did not see any playing time against Morehead State.
Instead, it was freshman outside hitter Morgan Williams who led the Tennessee offense. She hit a team-high 12 kills and proved she could be another lethal component in Rackham Watt’s offense.
Returning sophomore Maggie Dostic found her rhythm around the net with 10 kills of her own. Dostic was also impactful at the service line with two aces.
“She passed really well, served well, and when I looked at the stats, she had a great offensive game as well,” Rackham Watt said. “I thought she was super steady throughout the match. We went to her in some big moments when we needed a kill or a slideout, and she delivered.”
At times during the match, senior setter Caroline Kerr gave way to freshman setter Matheny Mallory to get her experience. Mallory recorded 11 assists during her time on the court.
“Mallory hasn’t been with us long, joined us in the summer and is a great setter, just young, so we need to get her out there as much as we possibly can,” Rackham Watt said.
While game one of the doubleheader turned out to be a great opportunity to test the depth of Tennessee’s squad, game two was a completely different story as the Lady Vols were pushed and had to rely on star power.
Tennessee vs. Fairfield (3-0)
After dominating Morehead State, the Lady Vols returned to the Food City Center in the evening to close out the Tennessee Tournament with a match against the Fairfield Stags.
While they pulled off the sweep, Tennessee was tested in sets one and two, winning 27-25 and 25-23, respectively. It was only in the third set that they pulled away, winning 25-12 to secure the victory.
“I was really glad that we were in that situation. Obviously, you would love to win matches easily all the time, but it doesn’t go that way, and you need your team to be tested,” Rackham Watt said. “I was really happy that Fairfield made us earn points. We had to make plays to win those first two sets.”
Once again, Rogers proved what a massive pickup she was out of the transfer portal with a dominant performance. The SMU transfer tied her career high of 21 kills and served as Tennessee’s go-to player when the team needed to stop the Stags’ momentum.
Jalyn Stout was second on the team with nine kills, Kerr had a solid outing with 41 assists, and Dostic continued her strong performance at the service line with three aces.
However, it wasn’t just the experienced players who played large roles.
Freshman middle blocker Jolene Oddo put together the best performance of her young career despite the pressure from the Stags. She finished the match with eight kills and two blocks.
Other freshman middle blockers, Camille Perry and Anni Tang, also entered the rotation and made their presence known in both matches.
“I think we have one of the best collections of middle blockers in the country, so I really feel confident putting any one of them in a game—they all do something just a little bit different,” Rackham Watt said. “I got a couple of young ones, but they are super talented, and they are fearless.”
Saturday’s doubleheader was the perfect opportunity for Rackham Watt to test different lineup combinations from her deep roster. However, things will become more challenging on Tuesday when the Lady Vols face their toughest test of the young season.
Up Next: Tennessee Volleyball returns to the Food City Center on Tuesday to compete in the inaugural Big Ten-SEC Challenge. The Lady Vols face the Illinois Illini at 7 p.m. EDT, broadcast live on SEC Network.