By Ryne Rickman, UT Martin Sports Information Director
MARTIN, Tenn. – The University of Tennessee at Martin got off to a great start today against Tennessee Tech but the Golden Eagles rallied to hand the Skyhawks a 3-2 setback (25-21, 25-20, 20-25, 22-25, 13-15) in Ohio Valley Conference volleyball action.
Securing double-doubles for the Skyhawks this afternoon were Karen Scanlon (season-best 17 kills, 10 digs) and Haeleigh Paulino (35 assists, 16 digs). Addison Conley pitched in a season-high 15 kills on a .294 hitting percentage while Olivia Saunders nearly posted a double-double with 10 kills and eight blocks. Dylan Mott also contributed a match-best 20 digs for UT Martin, who is now 13-14 overall with a 9-5 OVC mark.
Tennessee Tech (12-13, 7-7 OVC) recorded the first three points of the match but the first set wound up with 13 tie scores and seven lead changes. A balanced attack allowed the Skyhawks to bounce back quickly as their first four kills came from four different players (Scanlon, Conley, Olivia Lucia, Saunders). Back-to-back UT Martin blocks resulted in a 14-12 lead but the Golden Eagles recovered for a 7-2 run to go on top by two points. The Skyhawks then closed out the stanza on an 8-2 surge, starting with a pair of Lucia kills while Scanlon and Conley each tacked on a pair of kills apiece during the final push. Scanlon (five kills in eight swings) and Mott (eight digs) guided UT Martin in the opening set.
Kills out of Wallick and Scanlon powered the Skyhawks to a 3-0 advantage to start the second set. A Saunders kill gave UT Martin a 13-10 lead but Tennessee Tech stormed back to take a 17-15 advantage following a 7-2 run. Moments later, Scanlon tallied a pair of kills and a solo block during a stretch of five unanswered points for the Skyhawks. The Golden Eagles closed the gap to 21-20 but UT Martin regrouped with a timeout and reeled off the final four points of the set – two of which were via Scanlon kills. Scanlon managed a match-high five kills in the second set for the Skyhawks.
A pair of Conley kills led to a 4-2 UT Martin advantage to open the third set but Tennessee Tech scored six straight points to go on top by a 10-6 margin. The Skyhawks responded with a 5-2 run that included kills from Scanlon, Paulino, Jessica Reynolds and Conley, trimming their deficit to 12-11. However, the Golden Eagles scored seven of the next eight points and UT Martin wouldn’t get any closer than three points for the rest of the set. Conley (four kills), Mott (seven digs) and Paulino (seven digs) came away with impressive performances for the Skyhawks in the third stanza.
UT Martin led late in the fourth set but Tennessee Tech found a way to extend the match into the decisive fifth stanza. The Golden Eagles led 4-1 before back-to-back kills from Scanlon and Conley knotted the score at 6-6. The Skyhawk deficit reached five points (16-11) but UT Martin accounted for 10 of the next 14 points, emerging with a 21-20 advantage as Scanlon had two kills, a solo block and a block assist during the run. However, Tennessee Tech scored five of the final six points to send the match into a winner-take-all fifth set. Scanlon came away with team-highs in kills (three), digs (three) and blocks (two) in the fourth set for the Skyhawks.
Much like the fourth set, UT Martin was in prime position to close out the win throughout the fifth set but the Golden Eagles hit .455 (11 kills against just one error) to complete the comeback. Tennessee Tech took a 4-1 lead but momentum quickly flipped after a 7-2 Skyhawk run. UT Martin tallied three straight points (Saunders kill, Lucia kill, Audrey Haworth service ace) to go on top by a 12-11 margin but the Golden Eagles scored four of the last five points. Conley had three kills on six attempts to guide the Skyhawks in the final set.
UT Martin goes on the road for the final time during the regular season next weekend, heading to OVC rival Austin Peay on Saturday, Nov. 6 and Sunday, Nov. 7.
Graphic Courtesy of UT Martin Sports Information