Tennessee takes second SEC match in three days with win over Arkansas

Tennessee’s volleyball team (12-4, 3-1 SEC) added another SEC win to its record with a 3-2 victory against Arkansas on Sunday.

This marks the second straight five-set game that Tennessee has won, after winning 3-2 against Missouri (6-8, 0-4 SEC) on Friday.

Arkansas got off to a hot start, leading 17-9 in the first set before finishing with a 25-18 win.

Tennessee was able to regroup in the second set, playing closely with the Razorbacks through the first few minutes. With the Razorbacks up 10-9, the Lady Vols turned up the heat offensively, winning back-to-back points off of an Erica Treiber ace and a Raquel Perinar kill. This gave Tennessee a lead that it held for the remainder of the second set for a 25-20 win.

Arkansas took the third set 25-22, but the Razorbacks proved unable to close out the match in the fourth.

Tennessee and Arkansas stood locked at 19-all in the fourth set when the Lady Vols’ offense began to click.

6 of the next 9 points went to Tennessee, which moved on to win 25-22 in the fourth set.

Tennessee was firing on all cylinders heading into the fifth set, and the Lady Vols quickly closed out the match 15-7.

Despite the win, Tennessee finished behind Arkansas in attacks, kills and digs.

Conversely, the Lady Vols’ defensive efforts proved vital, as Tennessee’s 7 blocks and 6 service errors overcame Arkansas, which posted only 3 blocks and 9 service errors.

After recovering from their first SEC loss, the Lady Vols now hold a two-match win streak for conference play. Tennessee will attempt to continue such successs when it welcomes Alabama on Wednesday, Oct. 3 at 8:00 p.m.