By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Tech volleyball team will look to keep its winning ways rolling Wednesday evening, squaring off with Morehead State in a 6:00 p.m. CT match-up in the Hooper Eblen Center.
Action for Wednesday's contest is slated to appear on ESPN+ with Dylan Vazzano on the call.
The match with Morehead State will pit two of the Ohio Valley Conference's top three RPI-ranked teams against each other, with the visiting Eagles ranked second at 119 and the Golden Eagles just a few spots back at 126. Southeast Missouri leads the league at 116. Tech ranks second among all teams in the state of Tennessee, trailing only the Volunteers, who sit seventh overall.
Tech will return the meeting with Morehead State on Wednesday, Oct. 27 in a 5:00 p.m. CT contest in Kentucky.
THE MATCHUPS
Wednesday, October 6 – Morehead State, 6 p.m. | Live Video | Live Stats
TEAM NOTES
Tech continued to roll through OVC play over the weekend, turning in its first 4-0 start in the league since the 1993 campaign after sweeping Tennessee State in a pair of 3-1 victories. The Golden Eagles head into Wednesday's tilt tied with Austin Peay for the conference lead.
Senior Ashley Hand put together another elite week quarterbacking the Tech offense, averaging 11.88 assists per set while totaling 95 in eight games. On the year, the setter ranks third in the OVC with 10.04 helpers per set with 542 total. In league play, she paces the conference with an average of 11.53 assists each game.
Over the weekend, Hand moved into ninth on Tech's career assists list and currently sits just 57 from taking over eighth place from Melanie Culp. With 87 more, she will move into seventh passing Nancy Meyer.
Middle blocker Taylor Dorsey contributed another big weekend at the net, blocking 11 attacks while registering 23 kills in between the two matches. This season, the junior ranks second on the Golden Eagles with 139 kills while hitting .285, the third-best mark in the OVC. Her 1.13 blocks per set rank fifth in the league, while her 61 total ranks third.
Dorsey climbed Tech's career charts for block assists, passing Maggie Stern for fifth all-time. She needs 47 more to move past Bonnie Zoss for fourth place. The Birmingham, Ala. native ranks seventh on the program's total blocks list, requiring just two to skip past Carrie Slagle for sixth.
Returning freshman Madolyn Isringhausen has delivered a breakout campaign thus far in 2021, pacing the Golden Eagles with 179 kills while ranking fifth in the league in points per set (3.96) and sixth in kills per set (3.31). She has added 17 service aces, 98 digs, and 20 blocks to the mix as well. Libero McKenna Young leads the purple and gold with 3.89 digs per set, totaling 210 overall while ranking seventh in the league.
SCOUTING THE EAGLES
(2021 record: 6-9, 2-2 OVC | Series Record: 20-73 | H: 10-32 | A: 7-34 | N: 3-7)
The Eagles enter the midweek match-up after sweeping Murray State at home, evening their record to 2-2 in OVC play after getting swept by Austin Peay on opening weekend. Morehead out-lasted the Racers in the opening set of the two-game series, 38-36, and finished off a 3-0 win. The team held off Murray State in the second match as well, winning 3-2 in a thriller.
Two-time OVC Player of the Year Olivia Lohmeier is on the verge of moving into second place in career kills in MSU program history. She has 1,762 career spikes, needing only 11 more to surpass Dayle Hamontree in second place and 13 more to move into the OVC's top five in career terminations.
Junior libero Allison Whitten recorded just the third 40-dig effort in Morehead history in the first match with Murray State. Her total is the fourth-highest single-match dig output in Division I this season. Whitten has upped her career dig total to 1,524, which ranks eighth in program history.
Setter Bridget Bessler has double-doubles in three of her last four matches since returning from an injury that sidelined her for four matches. Bessler now has 2,326 career assists and is ranked eighth in career helpers in program history. She was named the OVC Setter of Week on Monday.
Head coach Dr. Jaime Gordon, who also serves as MSU's Director of Athletics, has led MSU to 332 wins, making him the all-time winningest coach in any sport at Morehead State.
Up Next
The Golden Eagles close out their five-match homestand with a pair of tilts with in-state rival Austin Peay on Friday and Saturday. Friday's contest is set for a 6:00 p.m. CT start while Saturday's affair is slated to begin at 2:00 p.m.
Photo by Jim Dillon
