Lady Vols Earn NCAA Tournament Bid, Hosting for First Time Since 2011

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – After enjoying one of the best regular seasons in program history, the eighth-ranked Tennessee Lady Vols earned a spot in the NCAA Tournament and were selected as the No. 10 national seed.

Competing as the No. 3 seed in the Stanford quarter of the bracket, Tennessee opens with the 23-7 High Point, the champions of the Big South, for a 6:30 p.m. ET first serve on Friday at Food City Center. The Lady Vols will also play host to No. 6 seed Western Kentucky and Coastal Carolina, who also face off Friday at 4:30 p.m. Fans can purchase all-session passes now at AllVols.com for $10. Parking will be free for all matches.

This is the 18th NCAA Tournament appearance in program history. The Big Orange's seeding marks the highest in UT history, and it's the first time the Lady Vols have hosted the first and second rounds of the NCAA Tournament since 2011, when Tennessee was the No. 11 seed—the previous program-best seeding.

This is the third consecutive trip to the dance for UT and the fourth under head coach Eve Rackham Watt (2018, 2021, 2022, 2023). The Orange & White head into the tournament 24-4 overall and 15-3 in SEC play. The Lady Vols finished second in the league, the conference with a tournament-best eight bids.

In Tennessee's previous appearances under Rackham Watt, it advanced to the second round of the tournament after first-round wins over Colorado State (2018) and North Carolina (2021). Last year, the Lady Vols fell short in a five-set battle to Purdue in the first round.

For Rackham Watt, this is her 12th postseason appearance as a coach–fourth as head coach. She made the NCAA Tournament eight times as an assistant at North Carolina. Rackham Watt also made four postseason trips as a player.

Tennessee NCAA Tournament Notes

The Lady Vols boast 18 NCAA Tournament appearances and own a 15-17 record.
The Big Orange's No. 10 national seed marks the highest in program history, beating the previous record of No. 11 in 2011.
UT has been a host school in the tournament nine times (1982, 1984, 1993, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2011, 2023).
The furthest Tennessee has ever advanced in the NCAA Tournament is the semifinals in 2005, when the Lady Vols finished with a 25-9 record after earning the program's first-ever Final Four appearance.
The Lady Vols are 11-6 in first round matchups all time, 2-9 in the second round, 1-1 in the round of 16, 1-0 in the quarterfinals and 0-1 in the semifinals.

Tennessee vs. The Field

The Lady Vols were 10-3 against NCAA Tournament teams during the regular season.
Tennessee's top win came in a 3-0 road sweep against the No. 2 seed Kentucky Wildcats.
Impressively, the Big Orange was 5-1 when playing on the road against tournament teams. UT's lone loss came at the hands of No. 1 seed Wisconsin in a five-set thriller in September.
UT was 2-0 against both Missouri and Texas A&M, and the Lady Vols were 1-0 against Auburn, Georgia, Florida and Marquette. The latter two teams were both road victories for Tennessee.

Recapping the Lady Vols' Incredible Regular Season

Tennessee is in the process of one of its best seasons in program history, posting a 24-4 overall record and 15-3 in conference play, climbing to No. 8 in the AVCA polls—the second-highest ranking in program history.
The Lady Vols boast one of the nation's best offenses, ranking inside the top five in the country and leading the SEC in kills per set (2nd/14.79), assists per set (3rd/13.57) and hitting percentage (5th/.304).
The Big Orange has swept 17 opponents on the year, including 10 contests during league play, and has lost just 15 sets in 18 matches against SEC foes. The Lady Vols won 18 straight sets during the end of non-conference play through the first few SEC contests.
Tennessee defeated four top-25 teams on the season, including road wins at No. 20 Florida, No. 22 Kentucky and No. 24 Marquette.
UT boasted an impressive 11-2 when playing on the road and finished with an 8-1 record in away SEC matches.
Tennessee was well represented with the SEC yearly honors. Representing the Big Orange, Eve Rackham Watt received Co-SEC Coach of the Year, while graduate student Morgahn Fingall repeated as Co-SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year. Fingall along with redshirt freshman setter Caroline Kerr and graduate student outside hitter Jenaisya Moore were selected for the All-SEC Team. Kerr was also placed on the SEC All-Freshman Team.

University of Tennessee Athletics

Lady Vols Earn NCAA Tournament Bid, Hosting for First Time Since 2011

Players Mentioned

Morgahn Fingall

Caroline Kerr

Jenaisya Moore

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