University of Tennessee Athletics
University of Tennessee
5-7
Memphis
8-4
Lady Vols Drop In-State Battle to Memphis
September 19, 2014 | Volleyball
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KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- In the second of two in-state matchups at the 2014 Lady Vol Classic, Tennessee (5-7) won its first game at home, but ultimately West Tennessee prevailed as a tough and experienced Memphis (8-4) squad edged out the hosts 3-1 (21-25, 25-21, 20-25, 21-25) Friday night at Thompson-Boling Arena.
Lone senior Shealynn Kolasky tallied a season-high 10 kills in the defeat to lead the team, backed by a team-highs in hitting percentage (.526) and blocks (7), while Lexi Dempsey finished with 37 assists and Bridgette Villano turned in a match-high 16 digs.
In a game with 22 total ties and 10 lead changes in front of 878 fans, the freshman and sophomores grew up a bit, according to Head Coach Rob Patrick.
"I was so proud of how they played," said Patrick. "We had four freshmen and a sophomore on the court most of the game. I was very proud with how we came together and worked together. We had a lot of energy no matter what the score was and I really liked that about that team."
A service error to end the first set summed up the opening act for the Lady Vols. Despite a nip-and-tuck 25-21 loss which featured nine ties, Tennessee's 13 errors--including five service errors--cost them the set. With the set tied at 15, Memphis' 6-1 run was matched by a three-point UT run, but an attack error and the final service gave the visitors an early 1-0 lead.
Tennessee stepped up their defense in the second set to tie the match at one apiece and earn their first game won of the Lady Vol Classic, thanks to a similar 25-21 score line. The team's five blocks, total error decrease and several point runs of 6-3, 6-0 and 5-0 prevented Memphis from clawing back into the game. After Patrick urged Kelsey Bawcombe to make a play during the first set, the freshman stepped up her game by tallying a couple kills and serving to drive the big 6-0 mid-game rally.
"I think (the freshmen) stepped up tonight and their energy was great," said Kolosky. "Being able to have 10 kills is great, but that wouldn't have happened without the freshmen and Lexi had some great setting tonight. We all played really well together."
In the crucial fourth set, Memphis used efficient offense and defense en route to an early 12-7 lead. The Lady Vols clawed its way back to a two-point deficit, but Memphis' frontline took control to extend its lead back to 18-13. Tennessee showed some life late in the game after a Patrick timeout, but Memphis held strong to pull out another 25-21 win.
"To lose not because of making errors but because we weren't carrying out some game plan stuff is something they're going to have to learn very quickly," said Patrick. "The biggest thing was to show them the sense of urgency to follow a game plan will make a difference in closing out a match like that and they understood that."
The Classic hosts will wrap up tournament play Saturday afternoon with a pair of games against Mercer at 12:30 p.m. and Montana State in the finale at 7 p.m.
