COLUMBIA, Mo. – The University of Tennessee at Martin volleyball squad faced off against the Missouri Tigers for the first time in school history this evening, falling 3-0 (12-25, 9-25, 13-25) to the defending NCAA Tournament participant.
Junior outside hitter Kayla Bryant topped the Skyhawks in kills (seven), hitting percentage (.375) and service aces (two) tonight while Katie Cruise and Dylan Mott led the team with 14 assists and 10 digs, respectively.
Kills by Addy Vaughn and Cruise kept UT Martin close in the early stages of the opening set before back-to-back points (kill, service ace) from Bryant. However, the Tigers immediately responded with a 14-3 run to take the first stanza. Bryant dialed up three kills and a pair of service aces in the opening set to guide the Skyhawks (2-6).
Maddy Gladson was responsible for kills on two of UT Martin’s first three points in the middle set. Bryant and Vallée would soon collect kills for the Skyhawks but Missouri (5-3) ended the stanza by scoring 13 of the final 15 points.
UT Martin found some momentum in the third set, racing out to a 3-1 lead behind a kill and service ace out of Kylie Surratt. Kills by Bryant and Kristin Phillips kept the Skyhawks on top before seven unanswered points from the Tigers. Another kill from Surratt trimmed UT Martin’s deficit to 11-9 but Missouri capped off the match on a 14-4 surge. The Skyhawk duo of Bryant and Surratt shared the team lead with three kills apiece in the final stanza as UT Martin committed just three attack errors for the entire set.
The Skyhawks conclude nonconference play tomorrow, finishing up their participation in the Mizzou Invitational with a 4 p.m. matchup against Kansas City.
