After slow start, Kentucky volleyball continues gold standard with another SEC championship
The most consistent program in UK Athletics — and perhaps the most consistent team across the NCAA Division I landscape — continues to be Kentucky volleyball.
Wednesday night marked the latest evidence in this regard for the Wildcats, as No. 10-ranked UK clinched at least a share of the SEC championship for a seventh straight season.
UK secured yet another conference title with a straight-sets victory at No. 9 Arkansas: 25-19, 25-14, 26-24.
The victory came in front of a crowd of 2,947 fans at Barnhill Arena in Fayetteville, Arkansas, the fifth-largest crowd in Arkansas program history.
Freshman outside hitter Brooklyn DeLeye led the Cats with 16 kills (and only two errors). Junior outside hitter Erin Lamb added 12 kills and senior outside hitter Reagan Rutherford totaled 10 kills on her return from an ankle injury as part of UK’s winning effort.
Juniors setter Emma Grome (36 assists) and Eleanor Beavin (19 digs) had match-high totals in the UK win as well. Beavin’s 19 digs represented the most she’s ever had in a three-set match.
UK is now 18-7 overall this season and 16-1 in SEC play. The Wildcats have won three matches this season against top-10 ranked opponents.
The only team that could force Kentucky to share the SEC championship is No. 8 Tennessee (24-3 overall and 15-2 in conference play).
UK closes regular season play at 1 p.m. Saturday inside Rupp Arena against Florida. Tennessee plays at South Carolina at the same time. Tennessee can only force a share of the SEC championship if the Volunteers were to beat South Carolina and Kentucky loses to Florida.
If the Wildcats were to lose and the Volunteers were to win and the SEC championship is shared, then Tennessee would earn the SEC’s automatic qualifying spot in the NCAA Tournament due to the tiebreak of points won in head-to-head matches played (144-137 in Tennessee’s favor).
Saturday will also mark Senior Day for UK, with Elise Goetzinger, Azhani Tealer, Riah Walker and the aforementioned Rutherford all set to be honored before the 1 p.m. match against Florida.
Now in his 19th season leading the UK program, head coach Craig Skinner managed to steer the Wildcats to yet another championship despite plenty of challenges.
UK brought in six new players this season, in addition to adding a new associate head coach (Ben Josephson) and a new assistant coach (UK legend and national champion Madison Lilley). Kentucky also experienced a venue change this season, as the Wildcats are playing their home matches inside Rupp Arena while Memorial Coliseum undergoes an $82 million renovation.
Prior to this season, UK last played a volleyball match inside Rupp Arena in 2012.
But despite these changes, Kentucky has kept winning: Since 2017 (when UK began this current stretch of winning SEC championships), the Wildcats are a combined 118-9 in conference matches.
Of course, this stretch also includes the high-water mark in Kentucky volleyball history, winning the 2020 NCAA Tournament (which was played in April 2021).
Kentucky’s ability to turn a slow start in nonconference play into yet another dominant season in SEC play almost mirrored the same path that UK’s season took last year.
In 2022, Kentucky lost three marquee nonconference home matches against Wisconsin, Louisville and Nebraska. UK then went 15-3 in SEC play, won a share of the conference title and defeated in-state rival Western Kentucky as part of a Sweet 16 run in the NCAA Tournament.
This year, Kentucky lost six of its first eight matches, including two defeats to Pittsburgh, a five-set loss to Purdue and comprehensive defeats at Louisville and Nebraska. The Wildcats even split their first SEC weekend of the season inside Rupp Arena, defeating LSU but losing to Tennessee in straight sets.
Then, Kentucky kicked things into high gear.
UK hasn’t lost since that Sept. 24 home defeat to Tennessee. Kentucky has won 15 straight matches while ascending to the top of the SEC standings.
While Tennessee and Arkansas (24-5 overall and 14-3 in SEC play) have both kept pace, Kentucky has been nearly flawless in conference play.
The reward for UK’s near perfection in the SEC?
Another championship, and another banner that will arrive inside Memorial Coliseum next year.
While Kentucky’s current run of consistency is impressive, it’s still a ways off from the longtime leader in SEC volleyball: Florida won at least a share of the regular season SEC volleyball championship in every season from 1991 through 2008.
Florida also shared the SEC volleyball championship with Kentucky in 2017, 2019 and 2022.
Newcomers, returners help Kentucky to another SEC title
So which players have helped power Kentucky to another volleyball title, and will be integral to the Wildcats as they look to make another deep NCAA Tournament run?
Freshman outside hitter Brooklyn DeLeye leads the Wildcats in total kills (340) and kills per set (3.70). Fifth-year middle blocker Azhani Tealer, a returning All-American, leads UK in hitting percentage (.392).
According to UK, Tealer is the first SEC student-athlete that’s known to have won five SEC titles with one team in a five-year window while playing in all five years.
Senior outside hitter Reagan Rutherford also ranks high atop UK’s season-long statistics with a 3.48 kills per set and a hitting percentage of .309.
Junior setter Emma Grome has more than 1,100 assists for the season and has continued her strong play after being named the 2022 SEC Player of the Year.
Defensively, junior libero Eleanor Beavin (3.99) and freshman Molly Tuozzo (2.20) lead Kentucky in digs per set. At the net, three different Wildcats have at least 50 blocks this season: Tealer (81), senior middle blocker Elise Goetzinger (60) and Rutherford (58).
Skinner’s ability to bring another new-look team together, yet still achieve the same successful end result, is continued evidence that he’s one of the top volleyball coaches in the country.
UK is ranked No. 10 in the AVCA coaches poll and No. 9 in the latest RPI rankings.
Kentucky has reached the NCAA Sweet 16 eight times with Skinner as head coach.
Skinner’s contract with Kentucky runs from July 1, 2022, through June 2027, and he’s paid a base salary of $450,000.
UK, other in-state schools to learn NCAA Tournament path this weekend
The SEC champions will soon learn what path lies ahead for them in the NCAA Tournament.
The 2023 NCAA Tournament Selection Show will be at 6 p.m. Sunday and will be broadcast on ESPN.
The 64-team tournament includes 32 automatic qualifiers and 32 teams selected with at-large bids.
First and second rounds of the NCAA Tournament will be played from Nov. 30 through Dec. 2, and the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight rounds will be contested from Dec. 7 through Dec. 9.
The national semifinals will be played Dec. 14 and the national championship match will be contested Dec. 17. The semifinals and championship match will be at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida.
In addition to Kentucky, both Louisville and Western Kentucky will be in the NCAA Tournament field.
The Cardinals (24-4 overall, 15-3 in ACC) are ranked No. 7 in the AVCA coaches poll and No. 4 in the latest RPI rankings.
The Hilltoppers (29-4 overall, 16-0 Conference USA) won their fifth straight C-USA regular season championship this season. WKU hasn’t lost a regular season C-USA match since 2018, a 74-match winning streak.
WKU also won the C-USA Tournament, which clinched the 16th NCAA Tournament appearance in program history for the Hilltoppers (and their ninth postseason berth in the last 10 seasons).
WKU is ranked No. 21 in the AVCA coaches poll and No. 20 in the latest RPI rankings.
Both Louisville and WKU have no remaining matches ahead of Sunday’s NCAA Tournament selection.
This story was originally published November 22, 2023 at 9:42 PM.
