Golden Eagles prep for Nashville road trip against Belmont, Tennessee State
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee Tech volleyball takes to the road again this weekend as they travel to Nashville for a pair of matchups against the Belmont Bruins and Tennessee State Tigers.
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25 | 25 | 25 | 3 |
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22 | 18 | 21 | 0 |
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Team Stats
Tennessee Tech
Belmont
| Game Statistics | Tennessee Tech | Belmont |
|---|---|---|
| Hitting % | .277 | .169 |
| Blocks | 7.0 | 1.0 |
| Digs | 61 | 52 |
| Aces | 1 | 1 |
Tennessee State
| Game Statistics | Tennessee Tech | Tennessee State |
|---|---|---|
| Hitting % | .277 | .189 |
| Blocks | 4.0 | 1.0 |
| Digs | 40 | 46 |
| Aces | 5 | 2 |
By Jonathan Caudle, TTU Sports Information
THE MATCHUPS
Friday, October 11 -- at Belmont, 6 p.m. | Live Video | Live Stats
Saturday, October 12 -- at Tennessee State, 5 p.m. | Live Stats
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee Tech volleyball takes to the road again this weekend as they travel to Nashville for a pair of matchups against the Belmont Bruins and Tennessee State Tigers.
The Golden Eagles (6-11, 2-2 OVC) went 1-1 last week during OVC play as Tech opened the weekend with a five-set victory over Eastern Kentucky before falling in a four-set match to Morehead State.
TEAM NOTES
- Junior Ali Verzani recorded her team-leading eighth and ninth double-doubles of the season, marking her eighth over the past nine games, over the weekend as she produced 16 kills and 15 digs against Eastern Kentucky and 13 kills and 11 digs against Morehead State.
- Sophomore Taylor Dorsey tallied 26 kills and 12 blocks against the Colonels and Eagles this past weekend. Over the past three games, Dorsey has 20 blocks with a pair of eight block contests against OVC opponents SEMO and EKU.
- Sophomore Ashley Hand dished out 81 assists against Eastern Kentucky and Morehead State.
- Hand also recorded 18 digs against EKU and 11 digs against MSU, marking her seventh and eighth double-doubles of the season.
- Freshman Carly Skrabak tallied 38 digs over this past weekend's contests. Her 14-dig performance against Morehead State marked her 11th-straight contest with double-digit digs and 15th game of the season.
SCOUTING THE BRUINS
(2019 record: 2-17, 1-3 OVC | Series Record: 13-16)
Belmont has produced a 2-17 record overall and a 1-3 record in OVC play so far this season. The Bruins two wins came in a pair of sweeps over Alabama A&M and Eastern Illinois.
Three Bruins have recorded triple-digit kills on the season with Halee Van Poppel leading the way as the sole Bruin to break the 200-kill mark at 222 kills in 2019. Akia Warrior has dished out a team-leading 410 assists this season, averaging 6.72 per set. Defensively, five Bruins have surpassed 100 digs this season with Halee Van Poppel and Peyton Kelley leading the way with 155 and 152 digs, respectively. Kailee Bass has been the Bruins threat at the net as she leads the team in blocks with 62 on the season, including eight solo denials.
The Golden Eagles secured a pair of five-set victories over the Bruins last season. Tech is behind in the all-time series against the Bruins, 13-16.
SCOUTING THE TIGERS
(2019 record: 9-8, 2-2 OVC *record as of 10/10/19 | Series Record: 44-18)
Tennessee State enters this weekend's competitions 9-8 overall and 2-2 in conference play. The Tigers opened league play with a 3-1 victory over Eastern Kentucky before falling in a sweep to Morehead State. This past weekend, Tennessee State earned a five-set win over Belmont but fell in their second five-set contest of the weekend to SIUE.
Julia Pierson leads the Tigers in kills this season with 156. Teuila Lolotai is the Tigers leading setter as she has dished out 237 assists so far in 2019. Defensively, Gina Rivera Ortiz leads the way for TSU with 330 digs on the season, while Aria Holmes has tallied 74 blocks this season for the Tigers.
The Golden Eagles split last year's contests against the Tigers as Tech fell at home in a four-set battle before earning a road win in Nashville with a 3-0 sweep of the Tigers.
Up Next
Following the Golden Eagles trip to Nashville, Tech will remain on the road as they travel to Eastern Illinois on Friday, October 18 and SIUE on Saturday, October 19.
Live stats will be available for each match and a paid broadcast through ESPN+ will be available for the contest against Belmont. For additional game updates, follow @TNTechVball on Twitter.
Photo by Thomas Corhern
