By Jonathan Caudle, TTU Sports Information
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 6
Tennessee Tech at Louisville • 11:30 a.m. • Live Stats
Tennessee Tech vs. Arizona State • 4:30 p.m. • Live Stats
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 7
Tennessee Tech vs. Western Kentucky • 12:30 p.m. • Live Stats
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee Tech volleyball continues its non-conference play this weekend as they head to Louisville, Ky. to play in the two-day Fleur de Lis Tournament at the L&N Federal Credit Union Arena, hosted by the University of Louisville on Friday, Sept. 6 and Saturday, Sept. 7.
The Golden Eagles will begin the round-robin tournament with a doubleheader on Friday at 11:30 p.m. (12:30 p.m. EST) against host No. 24 Louisville, before taking on Arizona State at 4:30 p.m. (5:30 p.m. EST). Tech closes out with Western Kentucky at 12:30 p.m. (1:30 p.m. EST) on Saturday.
TEAM NOTES
- Freshman Dallas Oatis recorded a career-high 15 kills and three blocks (one solo) against Northern Arizona
- Sophomore Ashley Hand tallied a career-high 30 assists in Tech's contest against the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks
- Freshman Carly Skrabak recorded a career-high of 13 digs against Northern Arizona
- Sophomore Taylor Dorsey hit for a season-high .583 and tallied eight digs against No. 15 Michigan
THE OPPOSITION
No. 24 Louisville (2019 Record: 2-1 | Series Record: 7-0)
Louisville opened up their 2019 season by hosting the Cardinal Classic, going 2-1 with victories against Dayton, 3-0, and Texas A&M, 3-2. Their sole loss of the year came in their season-opener against the Florida Gators, 0-3.
Melanie McHenry leads the Cardinals in kills with 31 on the season, followed closely by Claire Chaussee with 30 and Aiko Jones who has 28. Shannon Shields is Louisville's leader in assists, collecting 64 through the opening weekend. Defensively, Alexis Hamilton will be the biggest threat for the Golden Eagles who has tallied 34 digs through the first three contests.
Arizona State (2019 Record: 3-0 | Series Record: First Meeting)
After being selected to finish second to last in the Pac-12 preseason poll, the Sun Devils began their 2019 campaign at the Flo Hyman Collegiate Cup in Houston, Texas, going unbeaten through the three contests. Arizona State defeated the University of Houston, 3-1, LSU, 3-2, and Texas A&M – Corpus Christi, 3-1. Friday afternoon's contest between the Golden Eagles and the Sun Devils will be the first-ever for the two teams.
Western Kentucky (2019 Record: 3-0 | Series Record: 24-8)
The Hilltoppers competed in the Toledo Blue & Gold Tournament, going 3-0 to start the 2019 season. WKU earned victories over Loyola Chicago, 3-2, Toledo, 3-0, and North Dakota State, 3-0.
Paige Briggs and Lauren Matthews lead Western Kentucky offensively this season, tallying 44 and 42 kills, respectively. The back row is handled by a trio, including Logan Kael, Nadia Dieudonne, and Paige Briggs, who have 39, 35, and 34 digs through three contests, respectively. The Hilltoppers starting setter is Dieudonne, who has recorded 130 assists so far this season.
Following the Fleur de Lis Tournament, Tech will continue its road-stretch as the Golden Eagles travel to Chattanooga for the Chattanooga Classic, taking on Manhattan, UT-Chattanooga, and North Alabama on Sept. 13 and 14.
Photo by Thomas Corhern