University of Georgia
#20 Tennessee
Georgia Volleyball Upsets No. 20 Tennessee, 3-2
September 24, 2010 | Volleyball
Sept. 24, 2010
 Kathleen Gates  | |
ATHENS, Ga. - The University of Georgia volleyball team upset the 20th-ranked Tennessee Lady Volunteers, 3-2, Friday evening at the Ramsey Student Center in front of a crowd of 864.
Georgia (9-5, 1-2 Southeastern Conference) jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the match taking the first two sets, 25-17 and 25-23, but Tennessee (9-3, 1-2 SEC) battled back to even the match at 2-2 by taking the third and fourth sets, 25-19 and 27-25. In the fifth set, the Bulldogs trailed 7-4 but went on a 5-0 run with junior libero Carla Tietz on serve to take a 9-7 lead. From there, UGA closed out the upset at 15-10 by scoring six of the final nine points. It was the fifth five-set match for the Bulldogs this season, and they move to 2-3 in those contests.
"We feel really blessed to get a win tonight against a great Tennessee team and I am very proud of our toughness to get one in five sets," Georgia head coach Joel McCartney said. "Our emotional maturity is growing and that showed in this match with girls like KG and Valentina leading the way."
For the Bulldogs, it marked their first win over a ranked opponent since defeating eighth-ranked Florida, 3-2, in Athens on Oct. 25, 2008, and the victory is Georgia's second over a ranked opponent over the past 15 seasons.
Several Bulldogs contributed to the victory with junior setter Kathleen Gates providing 45 assists to set the offense's 62 kills and .248 hitting percentage. Gates added 10 digs for her team-leading fourth double-double of the year.
With Gates setting the tempo, three Bulldogs finished with double-digit kill totals led by freshman outside hitter Brittany Northcutt's 15 on a .222 hitting percentage. From the middle hitter position, senior Valentina Gonzalez added 13 kills on a .522 clip while junior Ann Dylla chipped in 11 on a .240 mark.
"When we passed the ball well our tempo with the middle offense was really strong," McCartney said. "Ann gave us great kill production in her position, but Vale literally took over this match and played nearly error free."
Defensively, Georgia led the match in blocks, 15.0 to 10.0, and digs, 53-48. Gates' 10 digs were supported by 12 from both Tietz and redshirt freshman Kathleen Luft. Dylla narrowly missed a double-double with a match-best nine blocks while Gonzalez contributed six stops.
"Although we often talk about the offensive side of the ball the truth is we won this match on the defensive side tonight," McCartney noted. "We had a great energy all day coming into this match and that kind of energy always converts to exceptional blocking. In the end, that might have been the biggest difference. Another big difference that won't necessarily show up on the stat sheet is how tough we served down the stretch. We were able to turn the tide in that fifth set because we were so aggressive in that area of the game."
Tennessee matched Georgia with 62 kills in the contest on a very similar hitting percentage at .233. The Lady Vols top performances came from Nikki Fowler, with 20 kills on a .417 clip, and Kayla Jeter, with 19 kills on a .317 mark.
"I want to thank a great crowd for helping keep our enthusiasm up tonight," McCartney added. "It really felt great to have that kind of support, especially when we went down 3-6 in the fifth. It's always a great lift to have the Bulldog Nation standing across from us feeding energy into our game."
Georgia continues its four-match home stand on Sunday against 24th-ranked Kentucky. First serve between the Bulldogs and the Wildcats (7-5, 1-1 SEC) is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. ET, and the first 500 children eighth grade and younger will receive Georgia silly bands. Admission is free to all regular season contests in the Ramsey Student Center. Live stats and live audio will also be available on www.georgiadogs.com.
