Lady Vols Drop Five-Set Battle Against #18 Georgia Tech

Thursday, December 5

Madison, Wisc.

5:30 pm

University of Tennessee

15-12,8-8SEC

Georgia Tech

21-9,12-8ACC

Tennessee

Georgia Tech

Lady Vols Drop Five-Set Battle Against #18 Georgia Tech

December 05, 2024 | Volleyball

Box Score Box Score Final Season Stats

MADISON, Wisc. – In a battle that saw 15 lead changes and 39 tied scores, Tennessee came up short in a five-set heartbreaker (25-18, 13-25, 32-30, 26-28, 15-12) against 18th-ranked Georgia Tech in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at UW Field House.

The Lady Vols (15-12, 8-8 SEC) posted 67 kills on .264 hitting, 66 assists, 65 digs, 14 blocks and three aces in the match. The Yellow Jackets (21-9, 12-8 ACC) recorded 79 kills on .232 hitting, 81 digs, 76 assists, nine blocks and two aces.

Graduate student outside hitter Nina Cajic capped off her impressive season with the Big Orange by tallying 27 kills on .338 hitting, 11 digs, a season-high six blocks, two aces and two assists. It marked her fifth 20-kill effort of the year and sixth double-double.

For her lone campaign on Rocky Top, Cajic broke the Tennessee single-match record for kills (42), 25-point rally-scoring era record for aces in a match (7) and set the modern era record for aces per set (0.39) in a single season. The All-SEC First Team selection was the first Lady Vol during the 25-point rally-scoring era to post 30 kills in a match, and she did so twice. Her final numbers for the year were 513 points, 448 kills, 204 digs, 42 blocks, 41 aces and 19 assists.

Freshman right side Paityn Chapman capped off a strong first year by posting 13 kills, four blocks and a dig. It was her 13th contest with double-digit kills, as she finished second on the team in kills (225) and blocks (69) for the year.

Rounding out the attack, junior outside hitter Hayden Kubik narrowly missed a double-double with nine kills and 11 digs. Junior middle blocker Keondreya Granberry had six kills, three blocks and three digs, while redshirt junior middle blocker Klaudia Pawlik added a match-high eight blocks and five kills.

Guiding the offense was redshirt sophomore setter Caroline Kerr, who tied a career high for assists in a match with 57 to go along with 13 digs, four kills and two blocks. It was her eighth double-double of the season and the fourth time eclipsing 50 assists. She finished with 1,069 assists—her second year in a row eclipsing 1,000—to mark the eighth most for a single year during the 25-point rally-scoring era, while her 10.28 assists per set ranked sixth.

On the back row, sophomore libero Katie Barrier and redshirt freshman outside hitter Eryn Jones each tallied nine digs, while senior libero Ashllyn King added four.

Georgia Tech grabbed the early momentum, using 18 kills and .316 hitting to win the first set. The Lady Vols evened things up with a dominant second stanza, recording 15 kills to just one attacking error and hitting .438 in the frame. Tennessee used a 15-5 run to swing the advantage in its favor.

The third frame was a battle, ending in a 32-30 edge to the Yellow Jackets. The Big Orange rallied from a six-point deficit but couldn't capitalize on six set-point opportunities. Cajic had the hot hand in the period, recording 10 kills to fuel the offense.

The fourth set was also a thriller, going to 28-26, but this time, it was the Lady Vols that came up victorious. Cajic had eight more kills in the stanza to fuel the Big Orange, including the final two points in the set. Both teams were evenly matched on offense, but it was Tennessee's four blocks to Georgia Tech's one that was the difference.

In the fifth and final set, the Lady Vols got ahead early, but an 8-3 run by the Yellow Jackets sealed the match.