Match Stats
- Tennessee defeats Georgia 3-0 (25-14, 25-21, 25-21)
- Tennessee improves to 10-4
- Georgia falls to 12-3
The Tennessee Volunteers got their first conference win of the year with a 3-0 thrashing of a Georgia team in front of a home crowd.
Georgia fought hard, but a combination of Bulldog mistakes and tough Tennessee defenses left Georgia hitting just .065.
Tennessee crushed the first set 25-14 before Georgia tightened things up somewhat in a pair of 25-21 sets to close the match.
Tessa Grubbs registered 12 kills and Bri Holmes 10 for a Tennessee offense that ripped through UGA. The Bulldogs didn’t have any players in double digits in kills, blocks or digs, but Meghan Donovan did have a solid team day with 23 assists.
Press Releases
Tennessee:
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Tennessee freshman Tessa Grubbs had 12 kills and Bri Holmes added 10 as the Volunteers defeated Georgia 3-0 (25-14, 25-21, 25-21) on Sunday for their first SEC volleyball win of the season at Thompson-Boling Arena.
“One of the things I thought we did a really nice job of was trying to limit some of the errors that we were causing us some lack of continuity on Friday,” Tennessee head coach Rob Patrick said. “I really liked how we bounced back. Our players really cared about what happened on Friday and wanted to correct it.
“We had a great practice on Saturday and we came out an performed today. I really liked the resilience of the team and how they stuck together.”
Grubbs averaged 4.17 kills per set in her first weekend of SEC play, finishing witha team-leading 25 kills while hitting .488 over two matches. Holmes was not far behind, averaging 4.00 kills per set; with her 10 kills Sunday, she surpassed the 750 career kill milestone in her career.
Tennessee opened the match with a 9-3 lead in the first set and never looked back. With a 6-0 run late in the set, the Vols lead 23-11 on back-to-back kills by Alyssa Andreno. The Vols hit .565 for the set — their best percentage of the match — and Erica Treiber finished out the set 25-14 on a kill.
Grubbs’ serving sparked a Tennessee comeback in the second set. Trailing 15-12, the Vols went on a 5-0 run — a streak that included three consecutive aces by Grubbs — to take a 17-15 lead and never trailed again. Georgia eventually fought off three set points before Holmes recorded a kill to end the set 25-21.
The Vols trailed by as many as five points in the third set. Georgia lead 20-19 on a kill by Megan Spencer, but Tennessee ended the match by winning six of the last seven points.
NOTES
- Tennessee Starters: Alyssa Andreno, Erica Treiber, Bri Holmes, Raina Hembry, Sedona Hansen, Britney Vallez and Brooke Schumacher made her third start this season at libero.
- Senior Bri Holmes recorded her 750th career kill between her college career played at UC Riverside and Tennessee. She entered the match with 747 and now has 757, the most of any current Vol.
- Tessa Grubbs’ three consecutive aces in the second set marked her career high for aces in a match.
- While four Vols made their SEC debuts Friday against Mississippi State, one more made her debut Sunday: defensive specialist Asha Phillips, who came in to serve in the second set.
- The Vols out-dug Georgia 32-27. Starting at libero for the third time this year, Brooke Schumacher led Tennessee with nine digs. Tennessee also had 11.5 blocks for the match, more than Georgia’s eight. Erica Treiber led with six blocks.
UP NEXT
- The Vols play two SEC matches on the road next week, first playing at South Carolina on Wednesday at 9 p.m. and then at sixth-ranked Florida on Sunday at noon.
- Both matches will be televised nationally. The South Carolina match will air on ESPNU and the Florida match is on the SEC Network.
Georgia:
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The Tennessee offense found a groove on Sunday, as the Volunteers (10-4, 1-1) took down Georgia (12-3, 0-2) in straight sets in Knoxville.
After falling 25-14 in a tough first set, Georgia kept the final two frames close, but lost 25-21 in both.
“We had some moments of nice rhythm, but it’s hard to compete with anyone in the SEC with the number of errors we had today,” said head coach Lizzy Stemke. “First week on the road was not successful in the way we would like to be competing but we will get back to the gym this week with more urgency to raise our level and find more ways to score.”
Majesti Bass led the Georgia attackers with eight kills, guided by setter Meghan Donovan who finished with 23 assists. Donovan played well all-around, totaling five kills and five blocks. Desiree McCray also made crucial plays at the net, posting six blocks against the Vols.
UT ‘s Tessa Grubbs led all players with 12 kills while hitting at a .579 clip. Bri Holmes followed with 10 kills for the match. The Vols hit .333 as a team while four aces and 11.5 team blocks lifted UT to its win.
UT went up 2-0 at the break after using long scoring runs in both the early sets for its advantage. In the first, Georgia got within 11-9 with a Kendall Kazor kill before a 5-0 spree by the Vols opened the lead for good. Georgia led much of the second set before the Vols’ service game moved the home team up 16-15. The Bulldogs surged back late with kills from McCray and Megan Spencer to hold off set point, but the Vols would put it away.
A fast start for Georgia out of the locker room had the Bulldogs up 8-4 in the third after a Donovan kill. The Vols got their first lead at 15-14 after capitalizing on three Bulldog miscues. From there, five tied scores put the contest at 20-all before a 5-1 run by UT sealed the match.
Georgia returns home this weekend to continue SEC action, taking on Alabama and Auburn beginning with the Crimson Tide coming to the Ramsey Center on Friday at 7 p.m. ET.
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