WKU volleyball will welcome a top 20 opponent into E.A. Diddle Arena Tuesday, as the Hilltoppers are set to take on the No. 16 Tennessee Volunteers in a rematch from the second round of the NCAA tournament a season ago.
WKU heads into the contest with a 4-2 record following an efficient weekend at the Kathy Deboer invitational in East Lansing, Michigan where they went 2-1.
Tennessee comes into Diddle with a record of 2-2. The two losses have been against top 10 opponents, Penn State and Louisville. The Volunteers have won their last two games, however, sweeping both UCLA and Long Island respectively.
WKU looks to continue their 12-game home win streak as they take on the Volunteers, the team that knocked WKU out of the NCAA tournament last year in straight sets. The Hilltoppers have not lost a game at home since September of last year, where they lost to then No. 17 Arkansas.
WKU was forced to adjust as they lost last year’s leader in kills and service aces, Paige Briggs, to the Pro Volleyball Federation. However, WKU has found a way to fill that void with multiple freshmen. One of those freshmen is outside hitter Alivia Skidmore who has racked up an impressive 58 kills behind only Kaylee Cox who has 64.
“[Alivia] is off to a great start, she has great experience,” Head Coach Travis Hudson said. “Anytime you see a freshman play that well in any sport, you can attribute that to the returning players around them, they have given her a comfort level and they take a lot of that heat off of her and just let her go be a volleyball player.”
The Hilltopper offense has been spearheaded by redshirt junior Callie Bauer who has racked up 223 assists through six games.
The Volunteers also had to make major readjustments as they lost 90% of their production from a season ago. The Volunteers are led by redshirt sophomore setter Caroline Kerr who is leading the Volunteers in assists on the season with 135. It has been Kerr and graduate outside hitter Nina Cajic taking the charge for Tennessee so far this season.
In the last matchup between the Hilltoppers and the Volunteers, Tennessee topped WKU in a 3-0 sweep to advance to the third round of the NCAA tournament.
Despite last year’s loss in the tournament, Hudson said WKU and Tennessee are both coming in with a new team.
“Even if it is a lot of the same players, it’s a totally different team and a totally different vibe, it is very rare that it feels like you are playing the team you were playing last year, and for me it’s another preparation against a really good team,” Hudson said.
Sports reporter Peyton Reid can be reached at [email protected]
