Kentucky won 23 matches and a SEC title but had its season end Saturday at No. 1 Pitt. (Vicky Graff Photo)
Kentucky was in position to make No. 1 Pittsburg really feel the pressure in the NCAA Volleyball Tournament Elite Eight Saturday.
Even though UK lost the first set 25-23 at No. 1 Pitt, the Cats took a 5-0 lead to start the second set and were on top 22-16. However, the host team went on a 6-0 run to tie the set at 22-22.
Kentucky had several unforced errors late in the set and those attack mistakes enabled Pittsburgh to come all the way back and win 25-23. The Panthers used a service ace for the set-winning point and finished the set with an 8-1 run to take a 2-0 lead.
The third set belonged to Pitt after it took an early lead and never let up. The Panthers hit .500 in the set and won 25-17 to close out the match and advance to the Final Four for the fourth straight year.
Kentucky’s season ended with a 23-8 mark and eighth straight Southeastern Conference title. Kentucky went 14-2 in league play and was the only SEC team to reach the Elite Eight.
Seniors Emma Grome, Eleanor Beavin and Erin Lamb won four straight SEC championships and won 91 matches in their four seasons. They reached the NCAA Tournament regionals three times. Senior Megan Wilson, an Oklahoma transfer, was part of two SEC titles.
Sophomore Brooklyn DeLeye, the SEC Player of the Year, had 22 kills but no other UK player reached double figures. Wilson had seen kills and five digs. Grome had 37 assists, five digs and three blocks.
Eleanor Beavin had 11 digs while Molly Tuozzo had seven.
Pitt hit .333 and Kentucky to .167 in the match. UK had more kills with 42 to Pitt’s 37, but 23 hitting errors and 11 service errors by the Cats were too much to overcome.
