University of Tennessee Athletics
Tuesday, September 1
Knoxville, Tenn.
7 p.m. ET
University of Tennessee
vs
Illinois
VB Preview: #22 Tennessee Hosts Illinois in Big Ten/SEC Volleyball Challenge
August 31, 2026 | Volleyball
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- No. 22 Tennessee returns to the court on Tuesday as it hosts Illinois in the Big Ten/SEC Volleyball Challenge. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET and will be televised on SEC Network.
Fans planning to attend this weekend's matches should follow Tennessee's clear bag policy. Parking is available free of charge to fans in the G-5/G-30 garage. Gates B and E will be the entrance for all general fans and player guests, while students will be directed to Gate A. Any additional items to know before coming out for any of the matches can be found on the Volleyball Gameday Page.
Illinois and Tennessee have met on eight occasions, with Illinois holding the advantage with a 6-2 record all-time. The two programs last met on Sept. 1, 2019 in Champaign, Illinois, with the Fighting Illini earning a five-set win.
The Lady Vols are coming off a perfect opening weekend that saw them earn three sweeps over Colgate, Fairfield and Morehead State. Kennedi Rogers had a stellar weekend to begin her Tennessee career. The sophomore outside hitter posted a pair of double-doubles, including tying her career-high of 21 kills and adding 10 digs in the victory over Fairfield. Caroline Kerr finished the weekend with 99 assists and an 11.00 assists per set average. In the win over Fairfield, Kerr totaled 41 assists and eight digs. It marked the 40th career match in which the fifth-year setter recorded 40 or more assists.
Multiple newcomers made an immediate impact for Tennessee. Raegan Burns had double-digit digs in all three matches for the Big Orange, including 11 against Colgate and Morehead State. Jalyn Stout stuffed the stat sheet throughout the weekend. The senior opposite totaled 29 kills, 17 digs, six blocks and six assists through the Lady Vols' three matches to begin the 2026 campaign. Freshman middle blocker Jolene Oddo led the team in blocks with seven. Oddo made an impact offensively with 15 kills, including eight against Fairfield.
Illinois enters after splitting its first two matches of the year, defeating Syracuse and coming up just short in a loss against Cincinnati. The offense is led by setter, Kenna Phelan, who posted 71 assists across the team's two matches last week. Phelan returns after earning All-Big Tem Second Team honors in 2025 after ranking seventh in the Big Ten in assists per set at 9.74 and tallying 1,032 assists. Taylor de Boer also returns for the Fighting Illini in 2026 after earning Second Team All-Big Ten recognition a season ago. The senior outside hitter put up 27 kills last weekend, including 13 in the win over Syracuse.
For the third year in a row, Tennessee set a new attendance record in its season-opening match. 7,924 fans packed into Food City Center to watch Tennessee's three-set win over Colgate. This broke the previous record set on Aug. 29, 2025, when 7,654 fans attended the match against USF. The Lady Vols played in front of raucous crowds throughout the weekend, drawing a total attendance of 20,598. Last season, Tennessee ranked in the top 10 nationally in both total attendance (57,056) and average attendance (3,804). Both attendance figures are also the highest for a single-season in UT history. Seven of the program's best home crowds occurred in 2025, including three of its top five highest attended matches. So far this season, Tennessee has set its third- and sixth-highest (6,687 vs. Fairfield; 5,987 vs. Morehead State) home crowds in program history.
Fans planning to attend this weekend's matches should follow Tennessee's clear bag policy. Parking is available free of charge to fans in the G-5/G-30 garage. Gates B and E will be the entrance for all general fans and player guests, while students will be directed to Gate A. Any additional items to know before coming out for any of the matches can be found on the Volleyball Gameday Page.
Illinois and Tennessee have met on eight occasions, with Illinois holding the advantage with a 6-2 record all-time. The two programs last met on Sept. 1, 2019 in Champaign, Illinois, with the Fighting Illini earning a five-set win.
The Lady Vols are coming off a perfect opening weekend that saw them earn three sweeps over Colgate, Fairfield and Morehead State. Kennedi Rogers had a stellar weekend to begin her Tennessee career. The sophomore outside hitter posted a pair of double-doubles, including tying her career-high of 21 kills and adding 10 digs in the victory over Fairfield. Caroline Kerr finished the weekend with 99 assists and an 11.00 assists per set average. In the win over Fairfield, Kerr totaled 41 assists and eight digs. It marked the 40th career match in which the fifth-year setter recorded 40 or more assists.
Multiple newcomers made an immediate impact for Tennessee. Raegan Burns had double-digit digs in all three matches for the Big Orange, including 11 against Colgate and Morehead State. Jalyn Stout stuffed the stat sheet throughout the weekend. The senior opposite totaled 29 kills, 17 digs, six blocks and six assists through the Lady Vols' three matches to begin the 2026 campaign. Freshman middle blocker Jolene Oddo led the team in blocks with seven. Oddo made an impact offensively with 15 kills, including eight against Fairfield.
Illinois enters after splitting its first two matches of the year, defeating Syracuse and coming up just short in a loss against Cincinnati. The offense is led by setter, Kenna Phelan, who posted 71 assists across the team's two matches last week. Phelan returns after earning All-Big Tem Second Team honors in 2025 after ranking seventh in the Big Ten in assists per set at 9.74 and tallying 1,032 assists. Taylor de Boer also returns for the Fighting Illini in 2026 after earning Second Team All-Big Ten recognition a season ago. The senior outside hitter put up 27 kills last weekend, including 13 in the win over Syracuse.
For the third year in a row, Tennessee set a new attendance record in its season-opening match. 7,924 fans packed into Food City Center to watch Tennessee's three-set win over Colgate. This broke the previous record set on Aug. 29, 2025, when 7,654 fans attended the match against USF. The Lady Vols played in front of raucous crowds throughout the weekend, drawing a total attendance of 20,598. Last season, Tennessee ranked in the top 10 nationally in both total attendance (57,056) and average attendance (3,804). Both attendance figures are also the highest for a single-season in UT history. Seven of the program's best home crowds occurred in 2025, including three of its top five highest attended matches. So far this season, Tennessee has set its third- and sixth-highest (6,687 vs. Fairfield; 5,987 vs. Morehead State) home crowds in program history.
Players Mentioned
L/DS
/ Volleyball
S
/ Volleyball
MB
/ Volleyball
OH
/ Volleyball
S/OPP
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