By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – Another weekend meant another tournament title and 3-0 record for the Tennessee Tech volleyball team, as the purple and gold picked up their eighth sweep of the season over Radford to win the Golden Eagle Invitational presented by Holiday Inn of Cookeville on their home court.
The Golden Eagles (9-0) extended the program's record for consecutive wins to start a season behind yet another stellar offensive showing, tallying 47 kills and 10 service aces in the three-set win. Tech set the tone right out of the gate, progressively pushing its lead further and further until it secured a 25-15 victory.
The Highlanders (3-6) made things interesting in set two, bouncing back from a five-point deficit on a pair of occasions and taking a lead of their own at 19-18. Tech quickly squashed that idea, moving back in front and keeping just enough distance for a 25-22 set win.
The Cookeville crew exploded out of the gates in the third set, moving out front 6-1 and leading by as much as 20-10. Radford again mounted a comeback bid, scoring seven straight points and eventually pulling to within two points.
Again, the Golden Eagles held things off, slamming the door closed with a 25-21 win. A trio of the purple and gold produced double-digit kills while five combined for the team's impressive total of 10 aces.
Leading the way while securing her third straight MVP honor in as many weekends was senior outside hitter Madolyn Isringhausen. The veteran piled up a match-high 14 kills while hitting .296 with seven digs. She also dropped in three more service aces, passing Cara Craig Church for fifth on Tech's all-time career rankings with 132.
Collecting All-Tournament honors along with Isringhausen, junior setter Jordan Karlen doled out 31 assists on the day, chipping in three kills, three aces of her own, and four digs. Also on the All-Tournament Team was senior libero McKenna Young, who chalked up 13 digs, four helpers, and an ace.
Senior middle blocker Elena Wallace racked up a season-high 10 kills while smashing an eye-popping .600 while senior outside Bella Powell contributed 10 kills, two blocks, and a .381 attack. Senior libero Aleeya Jones produced 12 digs while rookie outside Alayna Pierce supplied six kills, two assists, seven digs, and a pair of aces.
Tech wraps up the non-conference portion of its schedule next weekend at the Greensboro Invitational. The Golden Eagles will open play Friday, Sept. 20 against host UNCG in a 12:00 p.m. CT tilt before taking on Marshall later in the day at 3:30 p.m. The weekend concludes with a 10:00 a.m. session against Georgetown Saturday morning.
Photo by Jim Dillon
