Tennessee Bests LSU in Four Sets

Wednesday, March 24

Knoxville

2 PM

University of Tennessee

11-8,11-8SEC

LSU

9-12,9-12SEC

LSU

Tennessee

March 24, 2021 | Volleyball

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KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Morgahn Fingall's career-high 23 kills led the way for Tennessee as the Lady Vol volleyball team defeated LSU in four sets (22-25, 25-18, 25-23, 26-24) on Wednesday afternoon at Thompson-Boling Arena.

The win is Tennessee's sixth four-set win of the season, as they improve to 6-3 in games decided in four sets this year.

Fingall, the sophomore right side attacker, hit .286 on the day, while tacking on seven digs and two blocks.

Along with eight kills of her own, junior Ava Bell posted a team-high four blocks. She stands as Tennessee's leader in blocks this season with 63.

Setter Natalie Hayward delivered 42 assists to go along with eight digs on Wednesday. Hayward has accumulated at least 42 assists in four of the past five matches.

Lily Felts tallied eight kills and 10 digs in the 3-1 win.

Tennessee (11-8, 11-8 SEC) hit .226 on the afternoon, posting 56 kills and 46 assists. Defensively, the Lady Vols had eight total blocks. LSU struggled offensively, hitting just .197 and could not withstand late runs by Tennessee in the final three sets.

After LSU took set one 25-22, the Lady Vols used a 6-0 run early in the second set to take a 10-6 advantage. The Tigers responded with five-straight points of their own to take an 11-10 lead.

Down one midway through the second set, eight of the next nine points were awarded to the Lady Vols. The set ended on a 5-1 Tennessee run as the match became tied 1-1.

The third set was a back-and-forth affair that saw the teams knotted at 16 apiece. LSU led 21-18 before Bell recorded kills on two of Tennessee's next three points.

Facing a 23-21 deficit in set three, the Lady Vols won four consecutive points to win 25-23.

The fourth and final set was also tightly contested. Trailing 18-16, Tennessee fired off five-straight points. LSU regained the lead at 24-23, before kills by Fingall, Jasmine Brooks and a service ace from Hayward clinched set (26-24) and match.

UP NEXT
Tennessee and LSU return to the court Thursday afternoon in Thompson-Boling Arena for the final match of the series. First serve is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. ET and the match can be streamed on SEC Network+.

QUOTABLES

Head Coach Eve Rackham Watt

On how important Morgan Fingall was in today's win…
"I liked the matchup we were getting with her and I told Natalie Hayward to keep getting her the ball in the front or back row. Just having her available to hit in all six rotations so she's not just attacking in those front three rotations helps our rotations so much. I love watching her develop and grow out there because she continues to get better and more relied on. I was most happy about her serving in the third set where she put us in a position to win that set. Just watching her growing up and getting better is fun to watch."

On how the pace of the game affected the outcome…
"They would go on a run then we would go on a run. I think a lot of that had to do with service because they put us in some challenging situations with their serving and we did the same thing and ultimately, we won the serve and pass battle."

Sophomore Morgahn Fingall

On a new career-high in kills and helping lead the team to a win…
"I didn't know I had a career-high until after the game because it's one of those things where you work so hard during the match and it's good to see something pay off even though it doesn't feel that way. I'm so glad we were able to pull off this win and get another crucial SEC win."