By: Scott Wallace, Communications Coordinator for Volleyball & Softball
NASHVILLE – The Tennessee State University Tigers volleyball team will return home this weekend, looking to get their first home win of the season when they take on the Lindenwood Lions in Ohio Valley Conference action from Kean Hall.
The Tigers (2-20, 2-10 OVC), losers of ten in a row, have some work to do to get back in contention for postseason play. The top eight teams will make it to the tournament. Right now, TSU sits in the eleventh-place position, three games in the loss column behind UT Martin for the final spot.
This will be only the fourth and fifth matchups between the two schools. Last season, the Tigers split with the Lions during the regular season, then defeated Lindenwood in five sets on the way to the OVC championship. The Lions will be making their first trip to Big Blue Country.
Match 21: Lindenwood Lions (11-12, 7-5) at TSU Tigers (2-20, 2-10 OVC)
Date/Time: Friday, November 3 | 6 p.m. (CST)
Watch:
Lindenwood vs. Tennessee State 11/4/23 - NCAA Women's Volleyball Live Stream on Watch ESPN
Live Stats: https://tsutigers.com/sidearmstats/wvball/summary
Location: | Kean Hall, Nashville
Match 22: Lindenwood Lions (11-12, 7-5) at TSU Tigers (2-20, 2-10 OVC)
Date/Time: Saturday, November 4 | 2 p.m. (CST)
Watch:
Lindenwood vs. Tennessee State 11/4/23 - NCAA Women's Volleyball Live Stream on Watch ESPN
Live Stats: https://tsutigers.com/sidearmstats/wvball/summary
Location: | Kean Hall, Nashville
Quick Hits:
Freshmen Digging In
Three of the top five leaders in digs for the Tigers are freshmen. Cabranes leads the team with 411.
Jadyn Webb is fourth with 111, and
Alanys Otero sits fifth with 102. Their efforts are needed while junior libero
Hadley Pride recovers from injury. Cabranes tops the OVC in digs per set by a freshman this season.
Six Million Dollar Man Recruiting
After playing nationally ranked Stanford University in the regular season and Ohio State in the NCAA Tournament, Sutton vowed to add size and speed to her recruitment strategy. With the addition of tall and athletic transfers
Erica Calderone (Indian Hills Community College),
Jayla Holcombe (Murray State), and
Hennesys Lalane (Indian Hills CC), there are now eight players at her disposal who are listed at 6'0 and above.
Is There a Doctor in the House?
Not quite yet, but soon as freshman
Jadyn Webb received her white coat at festivities during Homecoming Week. Webb participates in the prestigious Dr. Levi Watkins Jr. Medical/Dental Accelerated Pathway Program. She was among 14 freshmen that earned the elite honor.
Club Teammates Bring Thunder to TSU
Rockwood Thunder Volleyball Club teammates
Kennedy Davis and
Jayla Holcombe have returned to the same team. Their 16-year friendship has led them to Big Blue Country. Based in Ellisville, Missouri, the Thunder is one of the most successful clubs in the country. They have produced several NCAA Division 1 players. The duo's play has been a key for the Tigers this season.
International Cuisine
Over the years, the Tigers have relied on an international approach to recruiting, so much that it isn't foreign (see what I did there) to hear music from other countries during pregame warmups. Grad student
Aleksandra Rojecka (Poland) and senior Alondra Santana-Rodriguez (Puerto Rico) are holdovers from last year's team. Like Santana-Rodriguez, freshman duo
Celianiz Cabranes and
Alanys Otero are from Puerto Rico.
Erica Calderone and
Hennesys Lalane come to Big Blue Country from the Dominican Republic. Freshman
Jadyn Webb has international experience playing for the US Virgin Islands.
Pierson Named Coach of the Year
Former volleyball player and grad assistant Julia Pierson, the head coach for Maplewood High School in Nashville, was voted the District 10AA Coach of the Year. Pierson, in her second year at Maplewood, played for the Big Blue from 2016 to 2019. In 2020, she was nominated for the NCAA Woman of the Year Award.
THE TIGERS AT A GLANCE:
SCOUTING THE LINDENWOOD LIONS:
- Head Coach Will Condon won his 500th career game earlier this season. He now has 509 and 96 at Lindenwood.
- Lindenwood was picked to finish seventh in the OVC.
- Jessie Seidel ranks fifth in digs per set, averaging 4.76. Against Morehead State, she posted a career-high 32 digs. She has scooped up double-digits in digs in all but two games this season. She also has one double-double. Seidel is the Lions' all-time leader in digs.
- Allie Otten ranks eighth in the conference in assists at 6.51 per set.
Up Next:
The Tigers will take their second trip to Macomb, Illinois, when they take on Western Illinois on November 10-11.
