Tennessee's volleyball team showed some grit by taking out a very tough opponent in the Louisville Cardinals in four sets, 25-17, 25-18, 23-25, 25-23, on Wednesday night in Thompson-Boling Arena.

It was a tough matchup for the VolleyVols because of Louisville's tall athletic front.  They were able to hold their own and go on some runs in the first couple of sets.  Key mistakes by the Lady Vols enabled Louisville to keep the game closer than coach Rob Patrick may have liked.

"Our team should take some confidence in being able to get some kills past a 6-foot-6-inch blocker."Coach Rob Patrick

"We played hard," Patrick said. "But we weren't able to string enough points together and played a little inconsistent than we needed to."

This inconsistent play came to hurt them during the fourth set when they were not able to close it out. They were able to rally from a four-point deficit and take the lead, but weren't able to end the game there.

Kelsey Mahoney played an excellent game for the Lady Vols.  With 16 total digs, she was able to help control the big front of Louisville and keep the offense together.

"She is doing a really good job of picking up the offense," Patrick said. "I'm real proud of her because she is really picking it up quick, not only the new offense but the speed of the game in general."

Up next are two road games against Southeastern Conference foes South Carolina and Florida.

The key thing is "focus" according to Coach Patrick.  One thing that they can build from the game is their success at hitting against Louisville's blocking ability at the net.

"Our team should take some confidence in being able to get some kills past a 6-foot-6-inch blocker."