The Big Orange (24-3, 15-2 SEC) now boasts 17 sweeps this season, including 10 during conference play. Riding an eight-match winning streak, UT has swept its last four foes and has won 15 straight sets.
Tennessee had a strong offensive showing, finishing with 52 kills on .339 hitting, 49 assists and three aces, while the defense held Mississippi State (12-15, 5-12 SEC) to .222 hitting thanks to 50 digs and six blocks. For the match, the Lady Vols averaged 17.3 kills, 16.7 digs and 16.3 assists per set.
Graduate student right side Morgahn Fingall led the way for UT, finishing with 20 kills on an impressive .594 hitting, 10 digs, two blocks and an ace. It was her fifth 20-kill effort and fifth double-double of the season. For the night, she averaged 6.7 kills per set.
Graduate student outside hitter Jenaisya Moore also recorded a double-double—her third of the year—with 13 kills, 11 digs and three assists. Redshirt freshman setter Caroline Kerr tallied 43 assists—an average of 14.3 per set—to go along with three digs, three kills, an ace and a block to round out the offense.
Spearheading the Big Orange defense, graduate student libero Yelianiz Torres notched a team-best 13 digs, while junior outside hitter Erykah Lovett added 11 digs and six kills to round out the four Lady Vols with double-figure digs. At the net, graduate student middle blocker Raeven Chase led the team with three blocks and six kills on .556 hitting, while sophomore middle blocker Keondreya Granberry chipped in two blocks and four kills.
Both teams came out hot on offense to begin the contest. The Big Orange out hit the Bulldogs .455 to .432. Four service errors by Mississippi State ended up being the difference in an otherwise balanced frame. Fingall led the way with seven kills on .700 hitting, while Kerr posted 15 assists.
In the second frame, both teams went back and forth with three lead changes and 10 ties, but the Lady Vols came out on top thanks to eight more kills from Fingall. Defensively, UT held the Bulldogs to just .184 hitting.
The third set was all Tennessee. The Big Orange opened on a 14-4 run—during which Mississippi State used both timeouts—and never looked back. The Lady Vols hit .353 compared to MSU’s .030 in the period, while…
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