FIRST SERVE: Tennessee State earned its second overall trip to the NCAA Volleyball Tournament and first since the 2007 season and will travel to Columbus, Ohio, to play at 3rd-seeded Ohio State on Friday, Dec. 2 in a first-round match at 7:30 PM ET / 6:30 PM CT. In their first appearance to the NCAA Tournament (2007), the Tigers fell in straight sets to the 11th-seeded University of Hawai'i 3-0 in Louisville.

Tennessee State (19-15, 10-8 OVC) vs. Ohio State (19-9, 15-5 Big 10)
Date: Fri., Dec. 2
Time: 6:30 p.m. CT
Location: Columbus, Ohio
Venue: Covelli Center (3,700)
TV: ESPN+

Social: @TSU_Tigers | @TSUTigersVB
Game Notes: TSU | Ohio State
Game Day Information: Watch | Live Stats
 
SERIES INFORMATION: This will be the first-ever matchup between the Tigers and the Buckeyes. 
 
WORSE TO FIRST: The Tennessee State Tiger volleyball team's run to the conference championship was one for the ages. The team was picked to finish last in the Ohio Valley Conference preseason poll after going 2-16 in OVC in 2021. After finishing in sixth in the regular season OVC standings, the Tigers squeaked their way into the OVC Tournament and reeled off three straight 3-2 wins to claim the OVC Tournament Championship and punch their ticket to the NCAA tournament as an automatic qualifier.
 
TOUGH TIMES DON'T DEFINE: The conference season success was fueled by a tough non-conference schedule that included a season-opening home loss to #14 Stanford and trips to Texas and California for tournaments. The Tigers opened September with a three-game slate in the Pam Littleton Classic facing two tough opponents from the WAC and Southland in Tarleton and Southeastern Louisiana. 

STREAKING TO THE END: The Tigers got hot at the right time and closed out the regular season by winning eight of their final 10 matches. TSU closed its regular season by picking up sweeps over Southern Indiana and Little Rock to end the season on a four-game winning streak. With TSU's three wins in the OVC tournament, the Tigers have now reeled off seven wins in a row, which marks the longest career winning streak for head coach Donika Sutton.

SWEET REVENGE: It's not often that you get one shot at facing an opponent three times in one season, let alone facing two different opponents three times apiece. In early September, TSU fell 3-0 to SEMO, followed by another loss to the RedHawks the following day. The Tigers would then drop two matches to Morehead State in early October. After finishing the regular season TSU earned the sixth seed in OVC Tournament, facing No. 3 Morehead State in the first round. The Tigers came away with the opening round win 3-2 after dropping both matches in the regular season, and would then move on the face SEMO for the third time in the Championship game, securing the 3-2 win over the RedHawks. 

KEAN KILLERS: The Tigers thrived in the friendly confines of Kean Hall this season. They opened their home campaign winning their first seven games before falling in a five-set classic to the OVC regular season champions UT-Martin. They finished the home season with an 11-3 record, going 11-2 at Kean.

INTERNATIONAL INFLUENCE: Over the years, TSU has been busy with recruiting players across the world. This season, six players hail outside of the United States. Assistant Coach Vicmari Cockrill, a former Tiger, is from Puerto Rico. Her influence helped in recruiting fellow Puerto Ricans, Sofia Garcia-Guerrios, Gina Rivera-Ortiz and Alondrah Santana-Rodriguez. Cockrill was helped to influence Johanna Alcantara who is Dominican to transfer here from Lindsey Wilson College. Music from their heritage was frequently played at home games helping with the home court advantage. Carla Boudal is from France and Aleksandra Rojecka came to TSU all the way from Poland. A;; six players are in their last seasons as a Tiger. 

HOME SICK: While the Tigers did thrive at home in Kean Hall, TSU struggled on the road going 4-9. TSU finished with three wins on the road during OVC play.

DIG THIS: Graduate student Gina Rivera-Ortiz is the Ohio Valley Conference career leader in digs. Rivera-Ortiz's 2,628 digs surpassed Kasey Elswick of UT-Martin who scooped up 2,606 digs in her career. Last season, the grad student became the all-time career leader in TSU history in digs. Her 731 digs this season also gives her the TSU single-season record and ranked her third in the country.

AWESOME ALCANTARA: Senior Johanna Alcantara took advantage of her only season as a Tiger. The transfer from Lindsey Wilson broke the TSU single-season kill record recording 501 kills on the season, making her the only OVC striker with over 500 kills. Her 539.5 points also led the conference. Alcantara earned the OVC Player and Newcomer of the Week three straight weeks this season and was named Newcomer of the Week another time.

WALL OF FAME: The Tigers used outstanding defense to fuel their run to the OVC championship. TSU led the OVC in opponent hitting percentage (.172), blocks per set (2.45), while also finishing as the only team in the conference to have over 300 total blocks with 326 which placed them second in the country. Kennedy Davis (138) and freshman Gabrielle Johnson (129) had over 100 total blocks with Davis leading the OVC in that category.

BREAK OUT THE BROOMS: TSU finished the year with six 3-0 sweeps on the season. The Tigers put together a three-game sweep streak on their home court to open the Tiger Invitational. TSU took down Belmont 3-0 to open the invite, followed by a 3-0 win over Bethune-Cookman and Alcorn State. The Tigers earned sweeps in OVC play over Little Rock and Morehead State.

FIRST YEAR PHENOMS: After a disappointing 2021 season, Head Coach Donika Sutton and staff went to work to bring in a crop of players that would mesh well with the returners. Johanna Alcantara, a transfer from Lindsey Wilson College, broke the TSU single season kill record and earned weekly OVC honors seven times this season. She was also named to the All-OVC First Team and All-OVC Tournament Team. Kennedy Davis came to Big Blue Country from Western Illinois University. The Junior finished first in the conference in total blocks with 138 and finished second in hitting percentage at .360. Davis along with freshman sensation Gabrielle Johnson helped the Tigers finish second in the country in total blocks. She finished with 129. Login Williams, a transfer from Radford, stepped in as a setter this season while Sofia Garcia-Guerrios was injured. Celestial Miller from Idaho State and Nicole Taylor a transfer from Seattle. also contributed for the Tigers during the season.  

ACES ARE WILD: Senior Carla Boudal led the OVC in total service aces with 58 which ranks her 11th in the country.

ALL-OVC AND ALL-TOURNAMENT: Three Tiger players were named to the OVC All-Conference and All-Tournament teams. Gina Rivera-Ortiz and Johanna Alcantara were selected to the first team and Kennedy Davis to the second team. The three Tigers were also named to the OVC All-Tournament team with Rivera-Ortiz grabbing the most valuable player award.

OVC PLAYERS OF THE WEEK: The Tigers earned OVC Player of the Week honors a total of 10 times this season.

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
10/24 Johanna Alcantara
10/31 Johanna Alcantara
11/7 Johanna Alcantara
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
9/19 Gina Rivera-Ortiz
9/26 Gina Rivera-Ortiz
10/24 Gina Rivera-Ortiz
NEWCOMER OF THE WEEK
9/19 Johanna Alcantara
10/24 Johanna Alcantara
10/31 Johanna Alcantara
11/7 Johanna Alcantara