NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The Tennessee State volleyball team opened their Ohio Valley Conference portion of their schedule at UT-Martin on Tuesday but fell in four sets. The Tigers now have set their sights on trying to get their first OVC win of the season, as they will travel to Cape Girardeau, Missouri, to take on SEMO for two games this weekend on Friday September 23, and Saturday September 24.

The trip will be a homecoming for Tiger head coach Donika Sutton, who grew up in Hyati, Missouri, which is 80 miles from Cape Girardeau.

"I am looking forward to coming home but this is still a business trip for us," said Sutton. "Spending time with family and friends will be nice but we have some work to do. The team is aware how hard it is to win OVC games on the road. We hope to have a good showing."

On Tuesday, The Tiger offense was paced by Celestial Miller, who finished with 14 kills on the day. Johanna Alcantara added 12 and Kennedy Davis chipped in with 10 as part of balanced Tennessee State attack. Three Tigers were in double figures in assists, led once again by Login Williams who had 22. Sofia Garcia Guerrios chipped in 14 and Gina Rivera-Ortiz added 10.

On the defensive end, Rivera-Ortiz scooped up 25 digs to complete her first double-double of the season. Gabrielle Johnson led the team with six blocks. Look for some great defensive play this weekend as both schools came into the week as the top two teams in the OVC in digs per set and third and fourth in opponents hitting percentage.
TSU and SEMO split their two games last season in Nashville.

The Matchup: Tennessee State Tigers (6-8, 0-1 OVC) at SEMO (5-7, 0-0 OVC)
Date/Time: Friday, September 23 || 6:00 p.m. (CST) | Watch | Live Stats
Date/Time: Saturday, September 24 || 7:00 p.m. (CST) | Watch | Live Stats

SCOUTING THE TIGERS:
· The Tigers have three current OVC Players of the Week. Login Williams was named Setter of the Week after surpassing her season high twice this weekend. Gina Rivera-Ortiz was named Defensive Player of the Week, leading her team in digs in all four games this past week. Johanna Alcantara was named Newcomer of the Week going for 48 kills (3.69 k/s) and swing at a .287 clip.
· Sofia Garcia-Guerrios enjoyed her best game since coming back from injury. She contributed 14 assists, six digs and a kill in the loss to UT-Martin.
· Carla Boudal has at least one service ace in 13 of the 14 contests.

SCOUTING SEMO
· This will be the OVC opener for SEMO
· SEMO wrapped up its non-conference slate and the 2022 Southern Illinois Saluki Invitational with a 3-0 sweep of Alabama A&M Sept. 17. The Redhawks notched a season-high 13 service aces against A&M. The Redhawks posted a 1-2 mark over the two-day tournament, falling to Bellarmine and Southern Illinois in the opening day. · Zoey Beasley was named to the Saluki Invitational All-Tournament Team after she registered a team-high 36 kills (3.27 kills/set) to go along with nine digs (0.82 digs/set) and six blocks (0.55 blocks/set)
· Tara Beilsmith was named OVC Defensive Player of the Week three-straight weeks to open the season.

UP NEXT:
The Tigers will be back at home when they take on Tennessee Tech on September 29 and 30.