By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – There were celebrations all around for the Tennessee Tech volleyball team Saturday afternoon, as the Golden Eagles delivered a 3-1 victory over Ohio Valley Conference foe SIUE on Senior Day in the Hooper Eblen Center.
With the victory, the Golden Eagles (19-7, 8-6) officially clinched a berth into the OVC Tournament, the team's fifth bid to the league's postseason event under the direction of head coach Jeannette Phillips and fourth in a row. Phillips' 98th win as Tech's leader also represented win number 19 on the year for Tech, its most since the 2008 squad finished 19-13 and won both the Ohio Valley Conference regular-season and tournament titles.
All eight senior members of the Tech squad saw the court on the day prior to the program's senior recognition following the match, with one, in particular, turning in a performance for the ages. Outside hitter Madolyn Isringhausen led the group of Golden Eagle veterans with a career-high 28 kills, smashing .436 to help pave the way to victory.
The Edwardsville, Ill. native also tacked on an assist, two service aces, a season-high five total blocks, and eight digs. Her second scoop of the night was a big one, marking the 1,000th of her Tech career and making her just the 11th member of the program's Double Grand Club (players who boast 1,000 of two separate statistical categories).
Isringhausen's 28 terminations tied for the second most in a four-set match in the rally-scoring era in program history. The performance also launched the senior into the top 15 for career kills in the OVC, ranking 13th overall in the history of the league.
Joining Isringhausen in the effort to down the Cougars, junior setter Jordan Karlen piled up 40 assists and 14 digs, completing her 15th double-double of the year. Freshman middle blocker Mallory Jenkins tallied nine kills and a season-best six total rejections. Fellow rookie Alayna Pierce dropped in seven terminations to go with 12 digs.
Senior libero McKenna Young drove ever closer to her own career milestone, scooping up 22 digs to pull her within 18 of becoming just the second Golden Eagle in program history to reach 2,000. Senior middle blockers Emma Pabon and Elena Wallace tallied six blocks and three kills between the two of them.
Defensive specialist Aleeya Jones turned in eight digs on her Senior Day, mixing in an assist and two aces for good measure. Senior outsides Brooke Amann and Bella Powell each made timely contributions on the day as well. Amann recorded two blocks, three digs, and a kill while Powell tacked on three kills and two digs. Rounding out the senior group, setter Jazmine Yamilkoski saw the floor for the second tie on the year, making four set attempts down the stretch.
It was smooth sailing for the Golden Eagles in the opening set, using 17 kills and a .297 attack to cruise to a 25-16 win. The Cougars bounced back in set two, however, using a 5-0 run to build just enough of a lead and hold on in the end for a 25-23 victory. SIUE used five blocks and nine attack errors from the purple and gold to get the edge.
Tech answered in set three, staving off a comeback bid by the Cougars for a 25-21 victory. It was never close in set four, as the Golden Eagles led wire-to-wire and sailed into the sunset with a 25-14 romp right into Senior Day festivities.
For the day, the purple and gold racked up 58 kills on a .242 hitting percentage, 12.0 total blocks, 71 digs, and six service aces.
The Golden Eagles wrap up their four-game home stand with its final two matches in the Eblen Center of the year, playing host to Southern Indiana next Thursday and Friday. The two will square off in a 3:30 p.m. CT affair on Thursday, Nov. 14 and close the weekend with a 6:00 p.m. battle on Friday, Nov. 15.
Photo by Jim Dillon
