Volleyball Central: at Alabama

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – After being off for the last week, the Tennessee volleyball team is back in action on Sunday when it travels to play against Alabama.

The Lady Vols (10-12, 4-8 SEC) split last weekend against Ole Miss and Georgia, registering a five-set victory over the Rebels on Nov. 1. Tennessee enters the match just a half game back of the Crimson Tide in the conference standings.

The Crimson Tide (12-10, 4-7 SEC) nearly knocked off Missouri on Friday night, taking the Tigers to five sets in Tuscaloosa. Alabama has four players who average more than 2.00 kills per set and are led by junior Doris Carter (2.84 kills/set).

The first serve of Sunday's match at Alabama is scheduled for 3 p.m. (ET) in Foster Auditorium. The match can also be seen on SEC Network+.

TOP 10 HERE THEY COME
Senior outside hitter Tessa Grubbs needs just four more kills this season to enter the top 10 in program history in career kills. She would be just the second Lady Vol player in the 25-point rally-scoring era to enter the top-10 in career kills.

Senior setter Sedona Hansen enters the Sunday meeting just 62 digs away to enter the top 10 in program history in career digs. She currently sits 13th with 1,078, needing just 39 digs to tie Kelli Scott (1999-2002) and Bridgette Villano (2013-16) for 11th on the all-time list.

LAST TIME
Tennessee vs. Georgia (Nov. 3)
Result: L, 1-3

Despite Tessa Grubbs third consecutive 20-plus kill performance, Tennessee fell in four sets to the Bulldogs. After losing closely contested set one and two, the Lady Vols came back to win the third set.
- Sophomore Lily Felts recorded her seventh career double-double finishing the match with a team-high 11 digs to go along with 13 kills.

SERIES HISTORY
Versus Alabama
Series: Tennessee leads 36-18
Last: Oct. 3, 2018 W, 3-1 Knoxville, Tennessee

The Lady Vols limited the Crimson Tide to just a .105 hitting percentage in the match en route to a four-set victory over Alabama last October.
- Lily Felts recorded a double-double with 16 kills and 12 digs on the left pin while Raquel Perinar tallied 14 kills on the outside. Erica Treiber tied for a team high with 16 kills in the middle.

STANDOUT STAT
Alabama was the first SEC opponent that Tennessee ever played in its program's history. The series dates back to 1973 with the Lady Vols winning the first ever match 2-0 in the West Georgia Invitational.

QUEEN OF KILLS
Tessa Grubbs has averaged 4.23 kills per set though 20 matches this season, which ranks third in the SEC.

In 40 of the last 42 matches, the Tega Cay, S.C. native has notched double-digit kills. During that stretch of 42 matches, she has 15 matches with 20-plus kills including in the last three matches this season.

Her career 3.77 kills per set ranks third in program history just trailing Tamala Bightman (4.32 K/S) and Ariana Wilson (4.08 K/S). Grubbs is 20th on the career active leaders list among all of Division I.

DOUBLE-DOUBLE MACHINE
Senior setter Sedona Hansen recorded her 11th double-double of the season with a team-high 51 assists and 11 digs against Ole Miss on Nov. 1. She is second all-time in program history for career double-doubles with 58, just four matches from tying the all-time program record.

She currently ranks fifth all-time in career assists with 3,266 while ranking 13th in digs with 1,078.

During the Auburn match on Oct. 6, Hansen became just the fourth player in Tennessee history to have 3,000-plus assists and 1,000-plus digs in her career.

NEXT UP
The Lady Vols are back on the road Wednesday when they travel to Fayetteville, Arkansas to take on the Razorbacks. Last season, Tennessee swept the season series, winning in four sets at Arkansas.

First serve is scheduled for 6 p.m. (ET) at Barnhill Arena. The match will also air on ESPNU.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Lily Felts

Tessa Grubbs

Sedona Hansen

Raquel Perinar

Erica Treiber

University of Tennessee | Official Athletics Site