University of Tennessee Athletics
VB CENTRAL: Tennessee vs. #21 Texas A&M
October 02, 2014 | Volleyball
Oct. 2, 2014 
VS
October 3, 2014 | 7 p.m. ET
Thompson-Boling Arena | Knoxville, Tenn.
TEXAS A&M
TENNESSEE
WK6
HOW TO FOLLOW THE MATCH
- Live video streaming will not be available for Friday's match.
- Fans who cannot be in attendance at Thompson-Boling Arena can follow the action through the provided by UTSports.com or through the live blog above.
- Be sure to follow @LadyVol_Vball on Twitter for match updates, photos, and more.
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THE SERIES
- Friday marks the 11th meeting all-time between Tennessee and Texas A&M in a series that dates back to 1982. It is also just the fourth meeting between the two programs under the SEC banner. UT leads the series 6-4, but A&M is 4-3 over the last seven meetings.
- Nov. 15, 2013: Texas A&M earned its third straight-set victory of the all-time series with a 3-0 win over the Lady Vols in College Station.
- Nov. 21, 2012: In a dramatic five-set match, UT saw its seven-match winning streak snapped as the Aggies claimed a 3-2 victory in Knoxville. A&M exacted some revenge in the victory as UT had swept the Aggies in College Station earlier that season. Both UT and A&M would represent the SEC at the NCAA Tournament that year.
- Dec. 4, 2004: The last time Tennessee faced a ranked A&M squad was in the second round of the 2004 NCAA Tournament. Playing in the friendly confines of Thompson-Boling Arena, the Lady Vols got 18 kills apiece from Kristen Andre and Michelle Piantadosi on their way to a 3-1 win, punching their ticket to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 1984.
TENNESSEE (7-9, 0-2 SEC)
- Tennessee came away empty-handed from its 2014 SEC opening weekend, falling 3-0 on the road to both Arkansas and reigning SEC champion Missouri.
- Freshman Kendra Turner led UT in kills over the weekend, tallying nine against the Razorbacks and six against the Tigers. She now has 102 on the year and is second on the team with 2.76 kills per set.
- Five true freshmen started Friday's match in Fayetteville. Kelsey Bawcombe, Iesha Bryant, Kanisha Jimenez, and Turner each got the starting nod for the fourth straight match, while Claudia Coco made her first career start at libero.
- Tennessee is 2-2 in Knoxville this season and will begin a four-match homestand Friday night. Spanning consecutive weekends, the homestand is the longest of the year for the Lady Vols.
- Freshman middle blocker Iesha Bryant is the only Lady Vol to have started all 16 matches this season. She is currently averaging a team-high 1.12 blocks per game -- good for ninth in the SEC.
- As a team, Tennessee ranks fifth in the SEC in digs per set at 14.68. Libero Bridgette Villano paces the Lady Vols with 3.51 digs per frame.
TEXAS A&M (9-3, 1-0 SEC)
- The Aggies, who have won their last two meetings with the Lady Vols, enter the match ranked 21st in the latest AVCA poll. Rich Kern ranks A&M 20th.
- A&M opened SEC play at home last week with a 3-0 win over Auburn. Shelby Sullivan put away 20 kills on 23 swings with just one error for a blazing attack percentage of .826. Jazzmin Babers added 11 kills in the win.
- Two of A&M's three losses have come at the hands of now fifth-ranked Florida State. The Aggies and Seminoles played back-to-back matches on Sept. 19-20 in College Station and FSU came away wins of 3-1 and 3-0.
- Shelby Sullivan, a 6-2 middle blocker, leads A&M in kills at 3.20 per set. That figure is good for 10th in the SEC, but her stellar attack percentage of .386 ranks fourth. Sullivan was an All-SEC and AVCA All-Southeast Honorable Mention selection a season ago.
- Head coach Laurie Corbelli has been the head coach at Texas A&M for 22 seasons and is the winningest coach in program history with 452 wins in College Station. She owns a career record of 551-321 over 29 seasons. Her husband, John, is A&M's associate head coach.
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Game Notes
Players Mentioned
OH
/ Volleyball
MB
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OH/RS
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OH
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/ VolleyballEverything Orange S3 | Hayden Kubik (Volleyball)
Friday, December 05
VB | Eve Rackham Watt Media Availability (12.2.25)
Tuesday, December 02
VB | Hayden Kubik Media Availability (12.2.25)
Tuesday, December 02
VB | Caroline Kerr Media Availability (12.2.25)
Tuesday, December 02
