No. 9 VB Falls to (RV) Lady Vols
9/3/2021 10:24:00 PM | Volleyball
The Bears forced a fifth set with Tennessee.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – No. 9 Baylor volleyball forced a fifth set with (RV) Tennessee, but fell 3-2 to the Lady Vols on Friday night.
The Bears (1-2) handed the Volunteers (4-0) their first set losses of the season after they had gone three-straight sets with their past three opponents.
Baylor took set one and four but fell in sets two, three and five to Tennessee.
Fifth-year outside hitter Yossiana Pressley accomplished a historic milestone in Thompson-Boling Arena, recording her 2,000th career kill. She had 26 kills on the night, needing only 24 to hit that mark.
"It's awesome to reach this milestone and have 2,000 kills," said Pressley. "I owe it all to my teammates, I wouldn't be able to accomplish that without them and I'm so thankful that I'm here."
Her coach was, of course, complimentary of his record-setting outside hitter.
"One thousand is a lot, 2,000 is twice as many and so many have been special kills for her," said head coach Ryan McGuyre. "Pretty exceptional kills and fun to watch. I feel pretty blessed to coach such an amazing athlete. She's a no-brainer future hall of famer for us at Baylor. We want to continue to give her a great experience and she'll continue pouring into this team."
She led her team in kills on the night, as well as total attacks and points. Setter Hannah Sedwick led the team in assists with 36 and Avery Skinner led in digs with 17.
The Breakdown
SET ONE
The Bears started out with the first point after there was an attack error from a Tennessee player. The Vols then scored the next three points. The teams traded points for the rest of the set, with the Bears taking it away after a Marieke van der Mark kill made it 15-14. The nail in the coffin in the set was a 18-14 block from van der Mark and Sedwick. Skinner recorded one ace in the ensuing run, and the Bears eventually took it after a kill from Pressley ended the set.
SET TWO
After going up 1-0 with winning the first set, the Bears made some costly errors. After seven assisted blocks were recorded in the first set, Baylor was beat on the block in the second. The Volunteers bested the Bears with 15 kills contributing to their points. Lauren Harrison recorded an ace, and Pressley had six kills, but it wasn't quite enough, and the Bears fell 25-23 despite the battle.
SET THREE
The Bears lost set three in the same fashion as set three, finishing behind at 25-23. BU went on a run with Skinner serving because of three-straight attack errors from the Lady Vols, and gave Tennessee a run for their money toward the end by trading points. In the end, it was a kill from the Vols that finished it out.
SET FOUR
Baylor found its groove in the fourth set after falling in two-straight, and was dominant in their redemption. The Bears went up early at 5-3, and really never gave away the lead for long. Tennessee challenged two plays but the calls were confirmed, keeping the two points with the Bears. It was a one-sided set from the Green & Gold to force a fifth.
SET FIVE
BU had forced their way into their first fifth set of the season, but the Vols had other plans in mind. It was in this final set that Pressley would solidify herself in the 2,000-kills club, but the crowd's roars had a hand in Tennessee taking the set from the Bears in the end.
SCOUTING THE PANTHERS
The Bears continue the weekend by taking on Pittsburgh on Saturday afternoon. First serve is set for 3 p.m. CT in Thompson-Boling Arena. Pitt is 4-0 going into the match with Baylor, and is ranked at No. 7 going into the weekend. The Panthers and Bears have only ever met in neutral settings, and the series has been dormant since 2009. Baylor won the last matchup in straight sets.
BEAR BITES
"Good hard-fought match on both sides. It comes down to a couple plays at the end of some sets. The sets we won, I thought we played really clean and smooth, sided out, hit a good percentage. Blocking showed up at times for us tonight. We'll get better as the season goes on. I wish we controlled our digs a little bit more so we could have heavier swings. Another good showing from Yossiana Pressley. We had good team blocking tonight. No rest, we have to play another good team tomorrow."
Fans of the Green & Gold can follow along with live stats, linked on the BU schedule. A full recap and final stats will be posted to BaylorBears.com after the conclusion of play.
To stay up to date throughout the season on all things Baylor volleyball, follow the team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @BaylorVball.
NEXT UP
The Bears will head to the Sunshine State to play Florida in back-to-back matches.
-BaylorBears.com-
The Bears (1-2) handed the Volunteers (4-0) their first set losses of the season after they had gone three-straight sets with their past three opponents.
Baylor took set one and four but fell in sets two, three and five to Tennessee.
Fifth-year outside hitter Yossiana Pressley accomplished a historic milestone in Thompson-Boling Arena, recording her 2,000th career kill. She had 26 kills on the night, needing only 24 to hit that mark.
"It's awesome to reach this milestone and have 2,000 kills," said Pressley. "I owe it all to my teammates, I wouldn't be able to accomplish that without them and I'm so thankful that I'm here."
Her coach was, of course, complimentary of his record-setting outside hitter.
"One thousand is a lot, 2,000 is twice as many and so many have been special kills for her," said head coach Ryan McGuyre. "Pretty exceptional kills and fun to watch. I feel pretty blessed to coach such an amazing athlete. She's a no-brainer future hall of famer for us at Baylor. We want to continue to give her a great experience and she'll continue pouring into this team."
She led her team in kills on the night, as well as total attacks and points. Setter Hannah Sedwick led the team in assists with 36 and Avery Skinner led in digs with 17.
The Breakdown
SET ONE
The Bears started out with the first point after there was an attack error from a Tennessee player. The Vols then scored the next three points. The teams traded points for the rest of the set, with the Bears taking it away after a Marieke van der Mark kill made it 15-14. The nail in the coffin in the set was a 18-14 block from van der Mark and Sedwick. Skinner recorded one ace in the ensuing run, and the Bears eventually took it after a kill from Pressley ended the set.
SET TWO
After going up 1-0 with winning the first set, the Bears made some costly errors. After seven assisted blocks were recorded in the first set, Baylor was beat on the block in the second. The Volunteers bested the Bears with 15 kills contributing to their points. Lauren Harrison recorded an ace, and Pressley had six kills, but it wasn't quite enough, and the Bears fell 25-23 despite the battle.
SET THREE
The Bears lost set three in the same fashion as set three, finishing behind at 25-23. BU went on a run with Skinner serving because of three-straight attack errors from the Lady Vols, and gave Tennessee a run for their money toward the end by trading points. In the end, it was a kill from the Vols that finished it out.
SET FOUR
Baylor found its groove in the fourth set after falling in two-straight, and was dominant in their redemption. The Bears went up early at 5-3, and really never gave away the lead for long. Tennessee challenged two plays but the calls were confirmed, keeping the two points with the Bears. It was a one-sided set from the Green & Gold to force a fifth.
SET FIVE
BU had forced their way into their first fifth set of the season, but the Vols had other plans in mind. It was in this final set that Pressley would solidify herself in the 2,000-kills club, but the crowd's roars had a hand in Tennessee taking the set from the Bears in the end.
SCOUTING THE PANTHERS
The Bears continue the weekend by taking on Pittsburgh on Saturday afternoon. First serve is set for 3 p.m. CT in Thompson-Boling Arena. Pitt is 4-0 going into the match with Baylor, and is ranked at No. 7 going into the weekend. The Panthers and Bears have only ever met in neutral settings, and the series has been dormant since 2009. Baylor won the last matchup in straight sets.
BEAR BITES
- Yossiana Pressley had her 2,000th career kill against the Lady Vols. She is only 272 kills away from breaking the school record, currently held by Elisha Polk at 2,272.
- The Bears gave the Lady Vols their first set losses of the season after they swept their previous three opponents.
- The Bears have only ever played Pittsburgh in neutral sites. The last time Baylor played the Panthers was in 2009.
"Good hard-fought match on both sides. It comes down to a couple plays at the end of some sets. The sets we won, I thought we played really clean and smooth, sided out, hit a good percentage. Blocking showed up at times for us tonight. We'll get better as the season goes on. I wish we controlled our digs a little bit more so we could have heavier swings. Another good showing from Yossiana Pressley. We had good team blocking tonight. No rest, we have to play another good team tomorrow."
Fans of the Green & Gold can follow along with live stats, linked on the BU schedule. A full recap and final stats will be posted to BaylorBears.com after the conclusion of play.
To stay up to date throughout the season on all things Baylor volleyball, follow the team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @BaylorVball.
NEXT UP
The Bears will head to the Sunshine State to play Florida in back-to-back matches.
-BaylorBears.com-
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