University of Tennessee Athletics
University of Tennessee
19-8,11-6SEC
Alabama
10-18,2-14SEC
Tennessee Wins on Senior Night, Sweeps Series Against Alabama
November 19, 2021 | Volleyball
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Celebrating its seniors and playing its final regular-season home match, the Tennessee volleyball team swept Alabama (25-16, 25-12, 25-21) Friday night at Thompson-Boling Arena.
All eight of the Lady Vols' (19-8, 11-6 SEC) seniors played in the match. Graduate senior Breana Runnels and senior Danielle Mahaffey both scored a match-high nine kills. Runnels led Tennessee with 14 digs, while Mahaffey finished with six assisted blocks.
Seniors Natalie Hayward and Raquel Perinar notched four kills apiece and hit .667 on the night. Hayward also dished out 29 assists and posted one block assist.
With UT up 14-4 in the second set, Perinar entered the match and served up an immediate service ace. The Lady Vol outside picked up a second service ace in the third set, setting a career-high with two aces. The Channahon, Illinois, native posted one block assist in the win.
Graduate senior Nicole Shanahan put down three kills on the night and picked up three digs, while senior Giana Pellizzon tallied one assist and one dig.
Tennessee equaled its blocking performance from Thursday night's win over the Crimson Tide as it again posted 13 total blocks Friday. Senior Ava Bell led the effort with seven block assists, while senior Lily Felts matched Mahaffey's six assisted blocks. Junior right-side Morgahn Fingall put up five block assists.
The effective net-front pressure applied by UT held Alabama (10-18, 2-14 SEC) to a .047 hitting percentage.
Tennessee put down 37 total kills against The Tide and committed nine errors in attack for a .274 hitting percentage Friday night. Over the two-match series, UT committed just 13 attack errors.
With the win, Tennessee has won six of the last seven meetings against Alabama with four of those wins coming in three sets. The victory also gives UT its 14th sweep of the year and seventh sweep in conference play.
It is the most sweeps by the Lady Vols in a season since 2010.
TENNESSEE STAT LEADERS
Kills – Breana Runnels (9)
Assists – Natalie Hayward (29)
Digs – Breana Runnels (14)
Blocks – Ava Bell (7)
UP NEXT
The Lady Vols close out the regular season with a Wednesday night showdown in Columbia, Missouri, against the Missouri Tigers. The match is set for an 8 p.m. ET first serve and can be seen on SEC Network.
