EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – Freshman Kylie Surratt landed a match-high 17 kills for the University of Tennessee at Martin volleyball team this evening but a close decision did not go the Skyhawks’ way as SIUE won in four sets (26-28, 27-25, 25-22, 25-21).
Surratt came away with double-digit kills for the 14th time this season while Kayla Bryant added 12 kills for UT Martin (5-19, 3-12 Ohio Valley Conference). Katie Cruise (seven kills, .400 hitting percentage, match-high 40 assists, 14 digs) came close to a triple-double for the second time in as many matches while Kristin Phillips had eight kills with team-highs of a .412 hitting percentage (just one error in 17 swings) and four blocks.
Dylan Mott led the Skyhawks with a match-high 15 digs while Makaelah Paulino registered a team-best two service aces.
The opening set included 15 tie scores and six lead changes by itself. Bryant had two kills and a solo block to help UT Martin lead by an 8-6 margin early. The Skyhawks faced a 22-19 deficit but rallied for three straight points to even the score. UT Martin then fought off set point three times, wrapping up the set with three unanswered points as a Paulino service ace was sandwiched around a pair of Cougar attack errors. Cruise had 10 assists and a team-best six digs in the first stanza.
The Skyhawks tied the score twice late in the second set but SIUE (11-15, 6-9 OVC) was able to even the match at 1-all. Addy Vaughn was responsible for UT Martin’s first two kills as the Skyhawks opened up a 10-7 advantage. The Cougars soon went on a 5-0 run to take a 17-14 lead but UT Martin battled back to knot the score at 24-all and 25-all. However, SIUE scored the final two points of the set. Bryant (five kills, .571 attack percentage) and Cruise (12 assists) led the Skyhawks in Set 2.
UT Martin led for a majority of the third set but fell victim to a 7-1 run to close the set as the Cougars took a 2-1 advantage. A service ace from Paulino made the score 8-4 in favor of the Skyhawks while back-to-back kills from Bryant and Phillips kept UT Martin’s advantage at four points (18-14). Surratt powered down a kill to keep the Skyhawks on top by a 21-18 margin but SIUE then struck for its aforementioned run. Phillips and Surratt each had four kills apiece while combining to hit .636 in the third stanza.
The Cougars began the final set on a 5-1 run before eventually claiming a 15-7 lead. Moments later, UT Martin reeled off six consecutive points keyed by Surratt (two kills) and Cruise (one kill, one service ace, three assists). Yet another kill from Surratt and Cruise helped the Skyhawks stay within three points late but ultimately the hole was too large to overcome. Surratt accounted for six of UT Martin’s 15 kills in the last set.
The Skyhawks play the final road match of the 2024 regular season tomorrow as they take on the Cougars at 5 p.m. on ESPN+.
