Eleanor Beavin had three service aces Sunday. (Vicky Graff Photo)
Kentucky volleyball continued its resurgence with another Southeastern Conference sweep Sunday in Memorial Coliseum.
This time coach Craig Skinner’s team swept LSU 25-22, 25-15, 25-18 for its seventh straight win. Kentucky has also now won 20 straight sets during its winning streak.
Senior Emma Grome had 33 assists for No. 13 Kentucky and got splendid play from middle blocker Jordy Dailey who hit .636 in the match. All-American Brooklyn DeLeye had 11 kills — her 19th straight match with 10 or more kills. She also had four digs and two blocks.
Brooklyn DeLeye ran her team-leading streak of double-digit kills to 19-straight matches as she logged 11 kills on 28 swings with four digs and a pair of blocks in the contest. Kentucky hit .297 and limited LSU to just .189.
Kentucky also had nine service aces in three sets led by senior Eleanor Beavin with three and Molly Tuozzo with two — Tuozzo also had 14 digs.
Kentucky’s dominant stretch has put Skinner’s team in position to host at least an opening round of the NCAA Tournament despite its struggles early against a rugged schedule. Kentucky has a hitting average of .284 in its seven-match win streak and has limited opponents to hitting under .150. Another key during the seven matches is that UK has 43 service aces to 19 for opponents.
Kentucky will host Georgia Sunday as it continues its quest to win another SEC title and host NCAA Tournament matches.
Kentucky (16-7) will host Georgia Sunday looking to extend its SEC lead. Kentucky leads the SEC at 10-2 with Missouri 9-2, Florida 9-3, Texas 8-3 and Arkansas 6-5. Kentucky also hosts Mississippi State and Arkansas before closing regular-season play at Missouri Nov. 27. Missouri also has a home match with Florida Friday.
Florida and two-time defending national champion Texas, which won at Kentucky earlier this season, were both picked to finish in front of Kentucky this season in the preseason coaches poll.
Former UK All-American Leah Edmon responded on social media to a question by UK fan Krystal Dittus Sunday about Kentucky’s chances of hosting the opening rounds of NCAA play again.
“Winning the SEC title should do it for them. Their RPI is 12 and KPI is 11 which would put them top 16 (and hosting NCAA first- and second-round matches),” Edmond posted on social media. “Of course not 100% cause the committee looks at a number of things when determining seeding.”
UK-LSU Volleyball
Photos by Vicky Graff
