By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Tech volleyball team will kick off the 2023 campaign with its first of four tournaments to tune up for the Ohio Valley Conference season, making a trip to Boone, N.C. for App State's Mountaineer Classic.
Slated from Friday, Aug. 25 to Saturday, Aug. 26, the purple and gold will square off with Bellarmine at 9:00 a.m. CT Friday morning to officially open the 2023 season. The Golden Eagles will take on William & Mary later in the afternoon with a 3:00 p.m. affair before wrapping up the opening weekend of action with a 12:30 p.m. tilt against App State on Saturday.
All contests will take place at the Holmes Convocation Center for the tournament. Each contest will also be streamed on ESPN+ throughout the weekend.
THE MATCHUPS
Friday, August 25 – vs. Bellarmine, 9:00 a.m. | Live Stats | Live Video
Friday, August 25 – vs. William & Mary, 3:00 p.m. | Live Stats | Live Video
Saturday, August 26 – at App State, 12:30 p.m. | Live Stats | Live Video
Building Momentum
Following a 2022 campaign that saw the purple and gold post its most regular-season wins (17) and Ohio Valley Conference wins (14) since 2008 (the last time the program won the conference crowns), Tech picked up its highest position in the league's preseason predictions during the rally-scoring era (since 2001), tying for first with Southeast Missouri.
Preseason Honors
A trio of Golden Eagles picked up Preseason All-OVC honors last week, including sophomore setter Jordan Karlen, junior outside hitter Madolyn Isringhausen, and graduate middle blocker Skylar Boom, the most Tech players earning preseason recognition since 2008.
Setting Things Up
Karlen returns for her sophomore campaign after becoming the first player in OVC history to win both Setter of the Year and Freshman of the Year in the same season, not to mention Tech's first-ever winner of Setter of the Year. The youngster ranked second in the league last season with 1,085 assists, a freshman record for the Golden Eagle program, and 9.77 assists per set.
Consistent Attack
It comes as no surprise that Isringhausen earned her second straight postseason honor from the league last season, improving upon her All-OVC Second Team nod in 2021 with a First Team accolade in 2022. The junior has been nothing if not incredibly consistent the past two years, recording 368 kills and 435.5 points last season after posting 364 terminations and 431.5 points the prior year. The team leader in kills and points for the second year in a row, she also paced Tech with 40 service aces, the fourth most by a Golden Eagle in a single season in the rally-scoring era.
Here Comes the Boom
Fresh off her first career postseason recognition from the OVC, a Second Team honor in 2022, Boom continued to make her presence felt at the net in her fourth season donning the purple and gold. Ranking among the both team and league leaders, she piled up 108 total blocks, 0.93 blocks per set, 88 block assists, 20 solo blocks, and 228 kills.
Floor General
Junior libero McKenna Young enters her fourth season in Cookeville after leading the Golden Eagles each of the past three seasons in digs and digs per set. A steady presence for the Tech defense, she has averaged better than 3.60 digs per set in each of her first three campaigns for the purple and gold, topping 430 digs overall in back-to-back seasons. Last year, she recorded her 1,000th career dig and looks to continue her run as the team's starting libero.
Up Next
The purple and gold will return to Cookeville for their annual home tournament, the Golden Eagle Invitational presented by Holiday Inn of Cookeville, from Sept. 1-2 in the Hooper Eblen Center. Tech plays host to in-state rival ETSU on Friday, at 10:30 a.m. CT and then Kennesaw State at 7:30 p.m. that evening. The tournament wraps up with a 2:00 p.m. tilt between the Golden Eagles and Cincinnati.
Photo by Jim Dillon
