By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Another dazzling display on both offense and defense propelled the Tennessee Tech volleyball team to its eight straight win Saturday afternoon, as the Golden Eagles (14-12, 11-3) completed yet another weekend sweep with a 3-0 brooming of Little Rock in the Hooper Eblen Center.
The Golden Eagles are now one win away from tying the longest winning streak since the 1998 OVC champion squad claimed nine consecutive victories. Tech now has its longest conference winning streak since collecting eight straight OVC dubs in 1983.
Using a robust attack and healthy defense, the purple and gold racked up 43 kills and 10 blocks across the three sets of play, all while holding the Trojans (7-20, 4-10) to a hitting percentage of .000. Little Rock did put Tech to work in the first set, however, making the Golden Eagles earn the opening point.
The visitors led by as much as five at 17-12, but Tech hung strong and eventually squared the set at 19-19. Both sides traded points until the Golden Eagles pulled away with a 4-0 run to earn a 25-21 win. The Cookeville crew accounted for 15 kills and two blocks while holding the Trojans to eight terminations.
Set two was all purple and gold from the outset, as the Golden Eagles led wire-to-wire for a 25-16 decision. The defense ratcheted things up in the second, piling up a whopping seven rejections to go along with 11 kills. Tech forced a total of 10 attack errors for Little Rock, leading to a -.086 hitting percentage.
The Trojans kept things tighter in the third set, but the purple and gold looked comfortable throughout on its way to a 25-20 triumph. Tech collected 17 kills in the set while holding Little Rock to just five terminations.
Freshman setter Jordan Karlen had another special day leading the offense, dishing out 37 assists with eight digs and four blocks. Less than 24 hours after becoming the first Golden Eagle to record a triple-double in the rally-scoring era, outside hitter Madolyn Isringhausen led the match with 14 kills. She added eight digs and a match-high three aces to the mix.
Middle blocker Taylor Dorsey had a solid day, contributing five kills with four blocks, finishing just one shy of becoming the third member of the Golden Eagle's 500-block club. Fellow middle Skylar Boom tallied seven kills with four rejections of her own.
Right side Morgan Gish totaled eight kills and a pair of blocks while outside Brooke Amann set her season-high in kills for the second straight match with eight. She chipped in four digs, a block, and an ace. Libero McKenna Young rounded up a match-high 15 digs while including a pair of aces and five assists into her day. Aleeya Jones mixed in five digs while Olivia Taylor picked up an ace.
The Golden Eagles hit the road for the final time in the regular season next weekend, making the long trek north for a pair of tilts at Eastern Illinois. Tech will square off with the Panthers Friday, Nov. 4 at 6:00 p.m. CT and again at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 5.
Photos by Jim Dillon