Lady Vols Log Five-Set Victory Over Ole Miss

Friday, November 1

Knoxville

6:30 PM

University of Tennessee

9-12,3-8SEC

Ole Miss

14-7,6-4SEC

Ole Miss

Tennessee

November 01, 2019 | Volleyball

Box Score Photo Gallery

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee volleyball team claimed its third conference victory of the season (25-18, 25-15, 19-25, 23-25, 15-11) in a dramatic five-set match Friday night against Ole Miss at Thompson-Boling Arena.

The win marks the Lady Vols' (10-11, 4-7 SEC) fifth five-set victory of the season and second in conference play.

Tennessee (10-11, 4-7 SEC) claimed the opening two sets of the match and recorded a .377 hitting percentage in the process, but were unable to close out the Rebels in the third and fourth sets.

After claiming a closely-contested fourth set, Ole Miss (14-7, 6-4 SEC) opened the deciding fifth set with a 6-2 lead, but the Lady Vols rattled off four straight points to tie the set at six apiece. Later holding onto a 11-10 lead, Tennessee went on to capture four of the final five points to take the fifth set, 15-11.

Sedona Hansen registered her 11^th double-double of the season and 57^th of her career to lead Tennessee with 51 assists and 11 digs. Hansen also recorded four service aces, tying the most by a Lady Vol this season. UT's team total of 11 service aces was one shy of a season high.

Tessa Grubbs eclipsed 1,300 career kills in the match, tallying a match-high of 21. The outing marks her sixth match of 20 or more kills this season.

Madison Coulter led the way in digs with 24, her sixth match of 20-plus digs.

From Coach Rackham:
On what she was most impressed with during the win:
"I think I was most happy with our service pressure. I think this was maybe the best serving match we've had this season. I was really excited about the mentality we had behind the service line, which enabled us to block a few more balls and dig a few more balls, which is all connected. For this group to be up 2-0 and then be down in the fifth set and find a way to come back and win I think was a big step maturity-wise for this group."

On rebounding from a tough recent stretch:
"Our team has really tried to stay the course. We've had a tough couple of weeks on the road playing really high-level opponents. Ole Miss is a good team and it's hard to win in the SEC this year, a lot of teams are really good. So we've kind of been in a tough stretch and I'm happy for this group to get the win. They've been frustrated and know that they're close, so I was just proud of them for sticking it out and finding a way in the end."

From Sedona Hansen:
On what the biggest factor in capturing the win was:
"I think it's just our determination to not lose. We were struggling in the fourth set and the beginning of the fifth and we just not want to lose. So we took it and ran with it."

On Sunday's match against Georgia:
"We have to have the same mindset. It's another important match for us and it's going to be a battle."

Standout Stat

The win over Ole Miss was the 20^th SEC victory of the Eve Rackham era. In 29 total conference matches, she is the quickest coach in program history to reach 20 SEC wins.

Match Notables

Tessa Grubbs improved her career kill total to 1,314 career kills in the match, tallying a match-high of 21. The match marks her sixth match of 20 or more kills this season.
Danielle Mahaffey was one kill shy of tying her career-high in the category, as she posted 16.
Sedona Hansen's two highest assist totals this season have come against Ole Miss. In the Sept. 27 meeting with the Rebels, she notched 60 assists before registering 51 on Friday night.

Next Up
The Lady Vols are back in action Sunday afternoon against Georgia. The Bulldogs defeated Tennessee, 3-1, on Oct. 4 in Athens, Ga. The Lady Vols won last season's lone meeting, 3-2.

First serve is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. (ET) at Thompson-Boling Arena. The match will also air on SEC Network+.