NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The University of Tennessee at Martin volleyball team made short work of Tennessee State this evening, defeating the Tigers in three sets (25-15, 25-23, 25-19) at Kean Hall.
Tonight’s victory put the finishing touches on a season sweep over Tennessee State as the Skyhawks have now won 10 straight decisions against the Tigers dating back to 2016. With the win, UT Martin improved to 6-14 overall and 4-6 in Ohio Valley Conference play.
The Skyhawks sided out at a phenomenal 81 percent (13-for-16) in the opening set, hitting .286 with 17 kills to gain the upper hand. Kayla Bryant had six kills while Haeleigh Paulino (13 assists, five digs) and Ryan Rednour (six digs) helped guide UT Martin early. The Skyhawks closed out the second stanza on an 8-3 run to take a 2-0 advantage in the match. In the third and final set, UT Martin posted a sideout percentage of .750 to eliminate any chance of Tennessee State (2-16, 2-6 OVC) avoiding the sweep.
Paulino tallied her ninth double-double of the season with a match-high 27 assists and 10 digs while also adding five kills for good measure. Bryant topped the team in kills for the ninth time in 2023 (sixth time in the last eight matches) with a dozen kills while Olivia Saunders had 10 kills on a match-high .364 attack percentage, a pair of service aces and two blocks.
Four Skyhawks passed the double-digit plateau in digs as Dylan Mott and Kayla Carrell split a match-high with 13 digs apiece. Rednour also scooped up 10 digs to join Paulino in that category.
UT Martin comes back home this weekend, hosting OVC rival SIUE on Friday, Oct. 20 (6 p.m.) and Saturday, Oct. 21 (11 a.m.).
