OXFORD, Miss. – The No. 6 Kentucky Volleyball team will travel to Oxford, Mississippi on Wednesday night to face off against the undefeated (RV) Ole Miss Rebels in UK’s road Southeastern Conference opener of the 2021 volleyball season. The match will be broadcasted on the SEC Network+, ESPN3 and the ESPN app with first serve scheduled for 7 p.m. ET.
Kentucky is 8-3 on the season with a 1-0 record in SEC play following the Wildcats’ sweep of Missouri on Friday night in Lexington. Ole Miss under the direction of second-year head coach Kayla Banwarth is 12-0 in 2021 with a 1-0 record in SEC play after they knocked off Auburn last Wednesday night to open their SEC season.
Wednesday’s match will be held at the Gillom Athletics Performance Center in Oxford and tickets are free to the match.
Madi Skinner leads the way offensively for Kentucky this season, averaging 3.95 kills per set on the year with a .293 hitting percentage and 1.37 digs per set. Skinner has been one of the most effective terminators of the ball this season across the country, as she currently sits fifth in the conference in kills per set with UK having played one of the most rigorous non-conference slates in the nation.
Defensively, Eleanor Beavin was named the SEC’s Freshman of the Week on Monday after her career-high tying 17 digs Friday night vs. Missouri. Beavin is averaging 2.89 digs per set on the season in addition to her seven aces. At the net, Azhani Tealer has been the stalwart, averaging 1.26 blocker per set to go along with her 2.50 kills per set.
Emma Grome also won an SEC award this week, as the Loveland, Ohio native won SEC Setter of the Week for the first time in her career after dishing out 41 assists in UK’s win vs. Mizzou on Friday night. She’s leading UK’s offense to a .280 hitting percentage on the year and is averaging just under 11 assists per set.
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