COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – After completing a demanding pre-conference schedule, the Tennessee State University Tigers Volleyball Team will be looking to jump in the win column as they travel to Cookeville to take on the Tennessee Tech University Golden Eagles (4-7). The Tigers (0-10) are the Ohio Valley Conference's defeating tournament champions. The two-hour trip east will be their first two matches to defend their title.

"The team has seen just about everything and more they will see in conference play," said head coach Donika Sutton. "We are battle-tested, and Tech will be a good test to see where we are. We are excited to get back to conference play."

The Tigers have been progressively playing better. Last weekend, they took a tough UC San Diego team to four sets. They had a chance to go to a fifth when they went up 23-20 but fell 28-26. Against Jackson State, TSU won the first set but lost the next two. They then came on strong in set number four to force a fifth set. TSU never led in the fifth set and took the loss. Against Belmont, TSU again took the first set but lost the next three.

Match 11: TSU (0-10) at Tennessee Tech (4-7)
Date/Time: Friday, September 22 | 6 p.m. (CST)
Watch  Tennessee State vs. Tennessee Tech (9/22/23) - Stream the NCAA Women's Volleyball Game - Watch ESPN
Live Stats: Tennessee State at Tennessee Tech (statbroadcast.com)
Location: | Eblen Center, Cookeville, Tennessee
 
Match 12: TSU (0-10) at Tennessee Tech (4-7)
Date/Time: Saturday, September 23 | Noon (CST)
Watch: Tennessee State vs. Tennessee Tech (9/23/23) - Stream the NCAA Women's Volleyball Game - Watch ESPN
Live Stats:  Tennessee State at Tennessee Tech (statbroadcast.com)
Location: | Eblen Center, Cookeville, Tennessee
 
 Quick Hits:
 
Motivated Tigers
Head coach Donika Sutton loves to motivate her players. Last season, her team was picked to finish last by her conference counterparts. That prediction inspired the Tennessee State Tiger volleyball team to win the OVC tournament, earning an automatic berth in the NCAA. Despite their strong finish, the Tigers are once again motivated. They are picked to finish sixth out of the 11 conference teams.

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.

Defense Wins Championships
Last season, the Tigers used an outstanding defense to fuel their run to the OVC championship. TSU led the OVC in opponent-hitting percentage (.172) and blocks per set (2.45) while also finishing as the only team in the conference to have over 300 total blocks with 326, placing them second in the country. Senior Kennedy Davis (138) and sophomore Gabrielle Johnson (129) had over 100 total blocks, with Davis leading the OVC in that category. Davis is the lone Tiger to make the OVC preseason all-conference team.
 
The Prides of the Nashville Area
Junior libero Hadley Pride has some big shoes to fill in trying to replace the OVC all-time leader in digs, Gina Rivera-Ortiz. Pride, a graduate of Hillsboro High School in Nashville, and Storm White, who hails from Smyrna, Tennessee, are the only Nashville area players on the roster.

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 Lalaine come to Big Blue Country from the Dominican Republic. Freshman Jadyn Webb has international experience playing for the US Virgin Islands.
 
THE TIGERS AT A GLANCE

• The Tigers are the defending OVC Tournament champions.
• Senior Kennedy Davis was the lone Tiger named to the Preseason All-OVC Team.
• The Tigers have nine players returning from their OVC championship team. Of the six newcomers, three are first-year students.
• TSU leads the OVC in blocks per set (2.38).
• Sophomore Gabrielle Johnson's two-way play has given her team a spark. She leads the OVC in blocks per set (1.13) and is in the top ten in hitting percentage (.293).
• Senior Kennedy Davis is fifth in the OVC in blocks (0.97).
• Junior Hennesys Lalane is making her way up the leading board in assists per set. She is now seventh in the conference at 7.10.
• Freshman Celianiz Cabranes had five aces against UC San Diego, which is a high for the team this season.

 
 
SCOUTING THE TENNESSEE TECH GOLDEN EAGLES:

• The Golden Eagles are picked to finish first in the OVC.
• Tech's 14-4 OVC record last year made them regular season runners-up.
• The Golden Eagles return All-OVC performers in first teamers Madolyn Isringhausen (First Team) and Jordan Karlen (First Team). Skylar Boom was named to the second team,
• Karlen is the 2022 OVC Setter of the Year and Freshman of the Year, the first student-athlete in conference history to take home both honors in the same season. After this season's first week, She was named Setter of the Week.

 
 
Up Next:
The Tigers will host Southern Indiana on September 29^th and 30^th.
The Tigers will open the OVC portion in the schedule when they travel to play Tennessee Tech in a two-game series on September 22 and 23.