Lady Vols Sweep Final Day of Rocky Top Classic, Secure Fourth Sweep In A Row

Saturday, September 10

Knoxville

12 PM

University of Tennessee

5-3,0-0SEC

Norfolk State

0-6,0-0MEAC

Norfolk St.

Tennessee

Photo by: Emma Ramsey/Tennessee Athletics

Lady Vols Sweep Final Day of Rocky Top Classic, Secure Fourth Sweep In A Row

September 10, 2022 | Volleyball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 Norfolk State Box Score The Citadel Box Score Photo Gallery

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The Lady Vols volleyball team swept through the final day of the Rocky Top Classic Saturday at Thompson-Boling Arena, defeating Norfolk State and The Citadel in straight-sets to take home the tournament title.

Tennessee (6-3) opened the day with a three-set (25-12, 25-17, 25-18) drubbing of Norfolk State (0-7) before sweeping (25-23, 25-14, 25-18) past The Citadel (4-5) in the nightcap. Tennessee has now swept its last four opponents and is 29-2 in home tournaments since 2015, with six of its last seven tournament victories coming by way of the sweep.

The Lady Vol attack worked all day as they totaled 88 kills and hit .373 over six sets on Saturday. Leading the offense was tournament MVP Morgahn Fingall who generated 31 kills on the day – 14 against NSU and 17 versus The Citadel. She averaged 5.17 kills per set and hit .459 on 61 attacks.

Erykah Lovett was close on her heels as the Newnan, Georgia, native scored 25 kills – 13 on Norfolk State and 12 against The Citadel. She hit .392 on Saturday and averaged 4.17 kills per set as she earned a spot on the all-tournament team.

Senior setter Natalie Hayward earned UT's final spot on the tournament team as she dished out 70 assists in six sets – 32 versus the Spartans and 38 against the Bulldogs. Hayward also put down six kills and four service aces to help the Lady Vols earn two sweeps to close out the Rocky Top Classic.

Match One – Tennessee 3, Norfolk State 0
Tennessee pulled away quickly from Norfolk State as it won the opening set 25-12. As was the trend throughout the day, Fingall was the focal point of UT's attack as she put down four kills and hit .667 in the first set. Freshman Kadynce Boothe equaled that mark with four kills of her own.

Redshirt junior Paola Laborda turned up the pressure from the service line as she earned a pair of aces. Defensively, Tennessee was stout as it held NSU to a .097 hitting percentage and posted six total blocks.

Lovett took her turn to lead the attack in the second as she powered the Lady Vols to a 25-17 win on the strength of eight kills. The sophomore hit .636 in the frame and played well in defense as she also picked up four digs.

Fingall tallied four kills and tied a career-high in aces as she fired home four in the set.

The spotlight was back on Fingall in the final set as she scored six kills and notched her career-best fifth ace as she helped lead UT to a 25-18 match-clinching victory. The Fairfax, Virginia, native also put up two blocks in the set.

Match Two – Tennessee 3, The Citadel 0
UT trailed through most of the first set but battled back to win six of the final seven points to complete the first-set comeback and win 25-23. Redshirt junior Emily Merrick provided a spark off the bench for the Lady Vols as she powered home three kills – her final kill gave UT its first lead in the set at 24-23.

The Citadel was the only team all weekend to break 20 points in a set against Tennessee.

In the second, UT jumped out to an early 8-1 lead that was never in doubt the rest of the way. Fingall sliced apart the Bulldogs' floor defense with seven kills and graduate senior Abigail Matoso dropped in a pair of service aces. Fingall and redshirt freshman Klaudia Pawlik led the Orange & White with a pair of blocks in the frame.

The Citadel kept the third set tight until a late six-point run by Tennessee closed things out at 25-18. Lovett notched seven kills in the frame to lead the Big Orange, while Fingall tallied five and added a trio of blocks.

FROM HEAD COACH EVE RACKHAM WATT
On Tennessee's performance this weekend…

"I thought the fact that we were able to go 3-0 without dropping a set is a really good indication of this team's growth. It's not easy to do, to play three matches back-to-back – especially two matches in a day – and not have any lulls against some teams that definitely put pressure on us at times. I think that was my favorite thing about the weekend – we were able to sustain our pressure set after set."

UP NEXT
Tennessee has a quick turnaround as it plays host to No. 21 Western Kentucky on Tuesday, Sept. 13. The match is scheduled for a 6:30 p.m. ET first serve inside Thompson-Boling Arena.