Courtesy of Tennessee State Athletics
NASHVILLE – The Tennessee State volleyball team jumped ahead 1-0, but couldn’t hold on and lost in four sets (25-22, 17-25, 23-25, 26-28) to the Eastern Illinois Panthers Saturday at home at Kean Hall Gymnasium.
The loss dropped Tennessee State’s record to 13-15 overall and 7-8 in OVC play. Tennessee State split the series with EIU after winning 3-1 earlier in the day.
The Tiger attack was paced by Johanna Alcantara, who finished with 20 kills on the day, and by Kennedy Davis, who had 10 while hitting .444. Defensively, had two players reach double figures in digs as Carla Boudalhad 15 and Gina Rivera-Ortiz had 15. From the front row, Gabrielle Johnsoncontributed five blocks.
Game Notes
» Carla Boudal had a team-high two aces in the loss.
» Johanna Alcantara had a team-high 20 kills for Tennessee State.
» Tennessee State got a team-high 15 digs from Carla Boudal.
» Tennessee State attackers were helped by a team-high 28 assists from Sofia Garcia-Guerrios.
How It Happened
SET 1 | The Tigers opened up an early one set to none lead, winning the first set 25-22. Tennessee State never trailed by more than five points and grabbed the advantage for good at 23-22 in a set that showcased three lead changes before TSU took over in the second half of the stanza. The Tigers got a solid defensive performance from a front row that blocked six Eastern Illinois attacks in the stanza and capitalized on 10 Eastern Illinois attacking errors on the way to victory.
SET 2 | Tennessee State then dropped set two 25-17, evening the match at a set apiece. Tennessee State trailed by as many as eight points as Eastern Illinois grabbed the advantage for good at 2-1 in a set that was tied up just once before the Panthers took over the lead.
SET 3 | Tennessee State lost again in the third set to make it a 2-1 deficit. The Tigers dropped a back-and-forth battle, losing 25-23 in a set that featured two lead changes and was tied eight times. Neither team had a lead of more than four points along the way.
SET 4 | Tennessee State lost set four and the match, falling 28-26. The Tigers couldn’t persevere past a ferocious Eastern Illinois rally, falling after leading by seven points at 18-11 earlier in the set.
TSU will hit the road for two matches against Southern Indiana in Evansville next weekend.
Next Match: at Southern Indiana 11/4/2022 | 6:00 PM
Team Statistics
| Game Stats | EIU | TSU |
|---|---|---|
| Kills | 64 | 49 |
| Errors | 32 | 23 |
| Attempts | 162 | 138 |
| Hitting % | .198 | .188 |
| Points | 76 | 63 |
| Assists | 58 | 48 |
| Aces | 5 | 4 |
| Blocks | 7 | 10 |
