Bulldogs Host Tennessee, Alabama this Weekend

Georgia (9-4, 1-1)
vs. Tennessee (7-5, 1-1)
Date: Friday, Oct. 4, 2019
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Athens, Ga.
Arena: Stegeman Coliseum

vs. Alabama (10-4, 2-1)
Date: Sunday, Oct. 6, 2019
Time: 2 p.m.
Location: Athens, Ga.
Arena: Stegeman Coliseum

Media Information
Streaming Video: SEC Network+
     Play-by-play: Kaleb Frady
     Analysis: Nikki Chester
Live Stats: GeorgiaDogs.com
Twitter: @UGAvolleyball

First Serve
Georgia volleyball returns to Stegeman Coliseum for a pair of Southeastern Conference matches this weekend against Tennessee and Alabama.

The Bulldogs and Lady Vols will face off Friday evening at 7 p.m. in the conference home opener. Sunday's match against the Crimson Tide is set to begin at 2 p.m. from Stegeman.

Follow the Bulldogs
» Both matches will stream live on the SEC Network+ via ESPN.com and the ESPN app. Kaleb Frady and Nikki Chester will be on the call.
» Live stat links can be found on the volleyball schedule on GeorgiaDogs.com.
» Twitter updates will be available all season long on the official Twitter page of the Bulldogs, @UGAvolleyball.

Upcoming Promotions at Stegeman
» FREE admission to all regular-season home matches; the Clear Bag Policy will be in affect
» All season long, the first 30 fans at Gate A at Stegeman Coliseum can sit courtside and will receive free food
Friday, Oct. 4 vs. Tennessee
» 90's Block Party - First 250 UGA students receive a free t-shirt and pizza
Sunday, Oct. 6 vs. Alabama
» Avengers Day - First 300 fans receive a free t-shirt
» First 150 kids receive free cupcakes
» Post-match autographs

BULLDOGS BULLETIN
Series Histories
Tennessee
- Georgia trails the all-time series 28-43
- In Athens, Georgia trails the series 14-18
- Georgia held a 2-0 advantage in last season's meeting in Athens, but Tennessee surged to swipe the match away in five sets
- The home-and-home was split in 2017 as Tennessee won the match in Athens in five sets but swept the Lady Vols in Knoxville a month later
- Tennessee has won six of the last 10 matchups
Alabama
- The all-time series between Georgia and Alabama is tied at 26-26
- Georgia has won the last three meetings, but Alabama has won six of the last 10
- In Athens, Georgia trails the series 11-13; however, on the road, the Bulldogs hold the advantage 13-10
- Georgia swept the match meeting in Athens in 2017

A Look Ahead
Up next, Georgia will travel to Lexington for a showdown with #15 Kentucky next Friday at 7 p.m. The Bulldogs then return to Athens to host LSU that Sunday, Oct. 13, at 2 p.m. Sunday's match will feature the first of two Dad & Daughter Days this season and will be Georgia's annual Pink match.

Let's Recap
Georgia opened Southeastern Conference play last weekend with a pair of road matches at South Carolina and #12 Florida. The Bulldogs and Gamecocks went five sets in a match that featured 37 ties and 13 total lead changes. Down 12-7 in the fifth set, the Bulldogs went on an 8-1 run to comeback and secure the SEC opener and widen their win streak to six matches. In Sunday's match, Georgia took set one against the 12th-ranked Florida Gators and nearly took the third set, but fell in four, snapping its winning streak.

In Search of 1,000
A pair of Bulldogs are closing in on significant milestones in their careers at Georgia. Junior Kendall Glover has 949 digs. The last to reach 1,000 digs was Cassidy Anderson in 2017. Glover looks to become the 20th member of the 1,000-Dig Club. Fellow junior Rachel Ritchie has 936 kills. The last to eclipse the 1,000-kill mark was Tirah Le'au in 2014. Ritchie looks to become the 18th member of the 1,000-Kill Club.

Going Streaking
Georgia's recent six-match winning streak was the longest since opening the 2018 season, winning seven straight. Georgia's recent streak was the second-longest for the Bulldogs in the Tom Black era.

Evans Garners Freshman of the Week
Freshman Kacie Evans was named the SEC Freshman of the Week on Sept. 23. The outside hitter from Wadsworth, Ohio tallied a season-best 16 kills in both matches at home last week, averaging 4.00 kills a set. She hit .467 against NC State Thursday evening, committing only two attack errors. She followed it up on Friday hitting .306 against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets along with recording a season-high four aces at the service line. She also averaged 2.00 digs per set over the two matches.

A New Volleyball Home Attendance Record
Georgia's home match against rival Georgia Tech on Sept. 20 set a new home attendance record of 3,480. The previous record was 3,222 set on Oct. 16, 2012 when Georgia hosted Georgia Tech in Stegeman Coliseum.

Helping Hands
Senior setter Meghan Donovan, Georgia's lone senior, ranks sixth all-time with 4,192 career assists. That figure ranks sixth amongst active career leaders in Division I. This season, her 11.35 assists per set ranks seventh in the country and is currently second in the SEC. As a junior, she earned SEC Setter of the Week four times and ranked second in the league with 11.07 assists per set, coming in at 29th nationally.

The Bulldogs at Home
In the first three seasons under Tom Black, Georgia has recorded a record at home of 20-11. Season one saw Georgia go 12-5 in Athens. The 2018 season was the first full-time season for Georgia volleyball in Stegeman Coliseum as Georgia went .500 at 6-6. In home-opening tournaments the last two seasons, the Bulldogs are 7-0.

Strong Finish to Non-Con Play
After starting the first two weeks of the season 3-3, Georgia has won its last five matches to conclude the non-conference slate 8-3. Now through three seasons of non-conference tournaments under Tom Black, Georgia has compiled a 27-8 record. In 2017, Georgia was 10-3 while putting up a 9-2 mark a season ago.

O Canada!
In February 2019, Tom Black was named the head coach of the Canadian Women's Indoor National Team. Volleyball Canada won the FIVB Women's Challenger in Lima, Peru in June, qualifying for the Nations League Tournament in 2020. While it did not qualify for Tokyo 2020 in Russia in August, Canada will have another opportunity to qualify in January.

Donovan Trains with USA National Team
Meghan Donovan spent a week in June training with the USA National Team in Anaheim, California. She was one of 28 student-athletes who earned the opportunity and was one of four setters on the roster.

2019 Schedule at a Glance
Twenty-nine matches are featured on the 2019 schedule with 11 set in Athens. The Bulldogs will open the home schedule with a tournament hosting North Carolina State on Sept. 19 and rival Georgia Tech Sept. 20. All home matches will be decided at Stegeman Coliseum once again this season. Southeastern Conference play begins on the road with back-to-back matches at South Carolina (Sept. 27) and Florida (Sept. 29). In all, seven teams on Georgia's 2019 schedule appeared in the 2018 NCAA Tournament and four finished in the AVCA Top 25.

A Look at the 2019 Squad
Georgia's roster features 15 total student-athletes, 10 returning from last season and five newcomers including four freshmen. Setter Meghan Donovan is the lone senior on this season's roster. Donovan enters her final season in the Red and Black ranked seventh all-time with 3,647 career assists. The five-member junior class features outside hitter Rachel Ritchie, Georgia's top returning kills leader (3.35 kills/set), and libero Kendall Glover who ranked top-10 in digs in the Southeastern Conference (4.09 digs/set) in 2018. Newcomers feature junior transfer opposite hitter/middle blocker Kaylah House from Coastal Carolina. Georgia also welcomes four freshmen.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Meghan Donovan

Kacie Evans

Kendall Glover

Kaylah House

Rachel Ritchie

University of Georgia Athletics