Offensive Firepower Leads Lady Vols to Five-Set Victory over Ole Miss

Wednesday, November 2

Oxford, Miss

7:30 PM

University of Tennessee

11-11,5-5SEC

Ole Miss

10-11,6-5SEC

Tennessee

Ole Miss

Offensive Firepower Leads Lady Vols to Five-Set Victory over Ole Miss

November 03, 2022 | Volleyball

Box Score Box Score

OXFORD, Miss. – Four Lady Vols scored double-figure kills as the Tennessee volleyball team defeated Ole Miss in a five-set thriller (25-17, 23-25, 25-18, 23-25, 15-13) Wednesday night at the Gillom Center.

Tennessee (11-11, 5-5 SEC) put away 69 total kills and hit .338 on the night as Erykah Lovett, Morgahn Fingall, Jasmine Brooks and Danielle Mahaffey all notched 10 or more kills.

Lovett led the team with 18 kills – her 18th double-digit kill outing this season – and finished with 11 digs to record her ninth double-double in 2022.

Fingall put down 17 kills and picked up 13 digs to notch her fifth double-double of the year. With her 17-kill performance Wednesday night, the senior right side now has 996 kills in her career and is just four away from the 1,000-kill milestone.

The Fairfax, Virginia, native will become the 23rd player in program history to reach the milestone and the 10th to do so in the rally-scoring era – 2001 to present.

Brooks added a season-high 10 kills in the win, hitting .450 and posting a pair of blocks.

Wednesday night saw the return of super-senior Mahaffey to the court as she played for the first time in 2022. The middle blocker shook off any rust quickly as she provided 10 kills out of the middle and put up five blocks.

Ole Miss (10-11, 6-5 SEC) hit .273 as a team with 63 kills in the match. Vivian Miller led the Rebels with 21 kills, while Sasha Ratliff tallied 14.

Tennessee came out firing in the opening set as it poured in 16 kills and hit .467 en route to a 25-17 win. Lovett scored five of UT's kills in the frame, with Fingall and freshman Keondreya Granberry notching three.

As was the theme for the night, Ole Miss responded in the second with an improved offensive effort. The Rebels took the second set, 25-23, behind 14 kills – four each from Miller and Ratliff – and a .258 team hitting percentage.

In the third, UT took advantage of another strong attacking, hitting .400 as a group and tallied 16 kills. Lovett again put down five kills, while setter Natalie Hayward, Brooks and Mahaffey scored three apiece to lead the Orange & White to a 25-18 victory.

Ole Miss and UT traded kills in the fourth with the Rebels putting away 17 to the Lady Vols' 16. Both teams hit over .340 in the set – Ole Miss at .351 and Tennessee at .344. Miller led the Rebels in kills at six, while on the UT side of the net Fingall scored seven.

In another close set, Ole Miss took the fourth frame, 25-23.

The tight back-and-forth battle continued into the fifth set with both teams putting down nine kills. The difference in the final frame was Tennessee's net-front presence, which put up three blocks and was led by Mahaffey with one solo block and a block assist.

Lovett also tallied a service ace to help push UT over the top and win the set, 15-13.

UP NEXT
Tennessee is back home in Thompson-Boling Arena for a two-match series against LSU on Nov. 5-6. Match time on Saturday, Nov. 5 is set for 1 p.m. ET, followed by a noon start time on Sunday, Nov. 6.