The No. 15 UT volleyball squad survived another weekend of conference play on the road.
The Lady Vols defeated Ole Miss and Alabama, improving to 24-3 (16-1 SEC) on the season.
Friday night’s match against Ole Miss provided UT coach Rob Patrick with a scare, however, as the Rebels gave Patrick’s squad all they could handle before falling in five sets (26-24, 26-28, 25-23, 17-25, 15-13).
“Mississippi played a great match and I’m proud of our players, who really grinded it out and worked through a tough match,” Patrick said. “We knew it was going to be tough.”
Sophomore outside hitter Kelsey Robinson led the Lady Vols, recording 24 kills.
Robinson has emerged as one of the nation’s elite players this season while leading her team and the conference in several statistical categories.
She commented on the challenges that accompany the Lady Vols position as conference leaders.
“You have a target on your back and everybody is going to give you their best shot,” Robinson said. “You can’t ever expect a team to just give you five points because you’re Tennessee. So everybody is giving us their best shot right now and that’s the biggest thing that comes with being on the top.”
The Friday-night match signified the second time Tennessee struggled to top Ole Miss (9-17, 5-13 SEC). The Rebels fought UT down to the wire in a five-set match last month.
“Mississippi just presents a bad matchup for us and they played great volleyball,” Patrick said. “We can win matches in a lot of different ways and today our defense wasn’t what it needed to be, but our offense was able to carry us through.”
The Lady Vols wrapped up the weekend with a drama-free trip to Alabama on Sunday, as UT disposed of the Crimson Tide in a three-set sweep 25-17, 25-14, 25-13.
“I was real excited about the way we came out and played from the first point on against Alabama,” Patrick said.
Robinson and junior middle blocker DeeDee Harrison led UT offensively. The tandem contributed 12 kills apiece. Robinson also paced the team defensively with 12 digs.
“Our hitters did a great job of playing low-error volleyball,” Patrick said. “Overall I was pleased with the defense, the offense and our serving. It was a good win for us.”
The Lady Vols will close the regular season with three consecutive home matches. Arkansas and LSU will visit Thompson-Boling Arena this weekend while Kentucky comes to town on Wednesday Nov. 23, as UT will look to avenge its only SEC defeat and potentially secure the conference championship.
“I’m excited about being at home,” Patrick said. “We play really well at home. We’re playing three really good teams at the end of the season.”
The Lady Vols are currently 10-0 within the confines of Thompson-Boling Arena this season, a mark they will look to improve during the stretch.
“We better come out and play as hard as we can,” Patrick said. “We have great fan support. And I ask all the fans to come out and support us here at the end of the year to help push us to an SEC championship.”
