CONWAY, S.C. – Graduate student outside hitter Nina Cajic tallied a match-best 17 kills to lead No. 16 Tennessee to a sweep (25-16, 25-18, 25-17) against Coastal Carolina on Sunday afternoon.
Cajic averaged 5.7 kills per set during the outing while hitting .371 to fuel the offense. She also added four digs, two blocks and an assist on the day. In total, the Lady Vols (5-2) tallied 45 kills and finished with .344 hitting in the contest to go along with 39 assists, 38 digs, seven and a half blocks and five aces.
Junior middle blocker Keondreya Granberry posted nine kills, one block and one dig. Redshirt junior middle blocker Emily Beeker and redshirt sophomore setter Caroline Kerr both tallied six kills on the day. Beeker added four blocks and a dig, while Kerr recorded 33 assists, six digs and one block.
On the back row, junior outside hitter Hayden Kubik posted a match-high 10 digs to go along with three aces, three kills and two blocks. Redshirt freshman outside Eryn Jones notched a career-best nine digs on the day.
The Tennessee offense had the hot hand to open the match, recording 16 kills on .452 hitting and three aces. After Coastal Carolina went up 15-14, the Big Orange ended the frame on an 11-1 run. Cajic led the offense with six kills on .667 hitting.
Similar to the first set, the Lady Vols and Chanticleers went back and forth to begin the second stanza followed by a 14-6 run by UT to outpace Coastal. The Big Orange offense added 16 more kills and two aces, while the defense recorded 16 digs, three and a half blocks and held CCU to .219 hitting.
Tennessee closed things out in the third and final frame, holding the Chanticleers to .065 hitting for the set and putting the match out of reach. The sweep marked UT’s third of the season and extended the Lady Vol win streak to five matches.
Up next, UT finishes its four-match road trip with a contest at Wofford on Monday night. The match will be streamed on ESPN+.
Cajic averaged 5.7 kills per set during the outing while hitting .371 to fuel the offense. She also added four digs, two blocks and an assist on the day. In total, the Lady Vols (5-2) tallied 45 kills and finished with .344 hitting in the contest to go along with 39 assists, 38 digs, seven and a half blocks and five aces.
Junior middle blocker Keondreya Granberry posted nine kills, one block and one dig. Redshirt junior middle blocker Emily Beeker and redshirt sophomore setter Caroline Kerr both tallied six kills on the day. Beeker added four blocks and a dig, while Kerr recorded 33 assists, six digs and one block.
On the back row, junior outside hitter Hayden Kubik posted a match-high 10 digs to go along with three aces, three kills and two blocks. Redshirt freshman outside Eryn Jones notched a career-best nine digs on the day.
The Tennessee offense had the hot hand to open the match, recording 16 kills on .452 hitting and three aces. After Coastal Carolina went up 15-14, the Big Orange ended the frame on an 11-1 run. Cajic led the offense with six kills on .667 hitting.
Similar to the first set, the Lady Vols and Chanticleers went back and forth to begin the second stanza followed by a 14-6 run by UT to outpace Coastal. The Big Orange offense added 16 more kills and two aces, while the defense recorded 16 digs, three and a half blocks and held CCU to .219 hitting.
Tennessee closed things out in the third and final frame, holding the Chanticleers to .065 hitting for the set and putting the match out of reach. The sweep marked UT’s third of the season and extended the Lady Vol win streak to five matches.
Up next, UT finishes its four-match road trip with a contest at Wofford on Monday night. The match will be streamed on ESPN+.
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