University of Tennessee Athletics
University of Tennessee
14-5, 7-3SEC
Texas A&M
15-4, 7-3SEC
Baker Leads Lady Vol Sweep At Texas A&M
October 19, 2012 | Volleyball
Oct. 19, 2012
COLLEGE STATION, Texas -Led by sophomore outside hitter and Texas native Tiffany Baker, the Tennessee Lady Vol volleyball team extended its Southeastern Conference winning streak to five matches with a 3-0 (25-21, 25-19, 25-21) sweep at Texas A&M on Friday night at Reed Arena.
The win improves the Big Orange to 14-5 overall and 7-3 in conference action, while a loss drops the Western Division leading Aggies to 15-4 and the same 7-3 mark in SEC play.
"I was really proud of the team," said 16th year head coach Rob Patrick. "To come into Texas A&M - which has a tremendous program, is leading the Western Division and has a very well-coached program with great athletes - and play as hard as we did and defend the way we did against one of the top offensive teams in the conference... I was very pleased with that."
Junior outside hitter Kelsey Robinson became the fifth Lady Vol in program history to eclipse the 1,000 mark in career kills and digs in the match. Robinson, who posted 14 kills and nine digs, joins Tennessee greats Nikki Fowler, Kristy Dobson, Stephanie Ehlers and Sonja Thomas in the exclusive club.
"I'm really proud of Kelsey," said Patrick. "She means so much to our team both offensively, defensively, as a leader and just somebody that's passionate about the game. She has done this over and over again in her career. She means so much to our team. I'm really happy for her. She definitely deserves to be in that 1,000/1,000 club."
Baker led the Big Orange attack with a match-high 15 kills and a blazing career-best .636 attacking clip. The 6-foot-4 Carrollton, Texas, native had just one error on 22 attempts to lead UT. Led by Baker, the Lady Vols hit .381 in the match, marking the squad's highest total in SEC play this season.
"Tiffany Baker had a tremendous match," said Patrick. "She was able to hit out of the back row and the front row and did a fantastic job blocking. She played a great low-error match and was able to lead us offensively."
Defensively, the SEC Player of the Week Ellen Mullins stepped up once again, posting 18 digs for an even average of 6.0 scoops per set. The junior libero has 115 digs over the past five matches for an average of 5.48 per set. Sophomore setter Mary Pollmiller also added 10 digs to UT's 57 total scoops and dished out an impressive 46 assists to notch her 10th double-double of the season. Pollmiller averaged 15.33 assists per set in the match.
"Again, six digs a game - she (Mullins) averaged six a game last week - she's playing at an All-American level," Patrick said. "She is one of our best passers and able to keep our back row consistent. She provides our offense with a lot of opportunities to score points. I'm really happy for her. She has put so much work in over the last few years and one of the most-coachable kids we've ever had."
Redshirt senior Kayla Jeter added nine kills for the Lady Vols, while another Texas native, Olivia Okoro, played her best match to date. Okoro contributed a career-high seven kills and hit at a career-high .462 attacking clip.
Tennessee held the Aggies - the league's top-ranked team in kills per set - to just 38 kills in the match and a .186 attacking percentage.
The opening set went back and forth between the two sides, but the two Texas natives came up big for Big Orange in the first. Baker and Okoro combined for 10 kills and hit a scorching .667 and .800, respectively, in the game. The two paced the Lady Vols to a .444 attacking percentage and a 25-21 opening set victory. The set consisted of seven ties and two lead changes, but Tennessee broke it open late with a 5-2 run. Robinson added four kills and four digs as UT outdug the Aggies, 18-12, in the game.
With her first dig of the set, Robinson became the fifth Lady Vol in program history to join the exclusive 1,000-kill and 1,000-dig club for her career. The outside hitter and the Lady Vols continued their stellar defensive play in the second set, outdigging A&M by a 25-20 margin. Mullins scooped nine balls in the set to lead UT. The set consisted of loads of runs on both sides of the net, as Tennessee used an 8-1 stretch to take a 14-7 lead and a 5-0 skid to go up 19-10 later in the game. Texas A&M had a pair of 3-0 stretches, but it was not enough as the Lady Vols took the frame by a 25-19 margin.
Carrying the momentum out of the break, Tennessee hit an even .500 in the potentially deciding third set to cruise to a 25-21 victory and sweep the Aggies. The Lady Vols used a 6-0 run late in the game to take a commanding 20-14 lead and never looked back. Robinson and Baker had seven and six kills, respectively, and hit .538 and .556, respectively.
The Lady Vols return home after three straight road matches on Friday, October 26 when they welcome SEC rival Kentucky to Thompson-Boling Arena. First serve between the Big Orange and Wildcats is scheduled for 7 p.m.
