KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – A record-setting crowd of 6,193 packed into Food City Center on Friday night for No. 15 Tennessee’s 3-1 (22-25, 25-16, 25-15, 25-20) loss to seventh-ranked Penn State.
The attendance mark shattered the previous record of 3,376 against Kentucky on Oct. 27, 2021.
The Lady Vols (0-1) had 23 attacking errors in the match and hit just .188, while the Nittany Lions (1-0) were led by a strong offensive effort of 60 kills on .343 hitting. Defensively, the Big Orange tallied 52 digs and seven blocks in the contest.
Freshman outside Paityn Chapman finished with a team-high 12 kills and two blocks for Tennessee, while junior outside Hayden Kubik added 11 kills and nine digs. Graduate transfer outside Nina Cajic rounded out the top attackers with 10 kills, six digs and two assists.
Redshirt sophomore setter Caroline Kerr recorded the sixth double-double of her career, tallying 38 assists, 11 digs and three kills. Leading the Lady Vol defensive efforts, sophomore libero Sydney Jaynes posted a match-high 15 digs, while junior middle blocker Keondreya Granberry tied for the match lead with four blocks to go along with five kills.
The first set had fans on the edge of their seats. Both teams went back and forth all the way through the media timeout. Shortly after, Penn State held a 17-16 advantage, but the Lady Vols swung the momentum in its favor with a 9-5 run to win the set, 25-22. Chapman led the way offensively, recording four kills in the frame.
The Nittany Lions responded with a pair of strong frames in the second and third to pull ahead in the match. Penn State hit .306 followed by .455 in the sets to swing the momentum in its favor, winning the second period 25-16 and the third 25-15. UT battled in the final frame, but the Nittany Lion offense continued to put the pressure on with 17 kills and an ace before claiming the set 25-20.
Up next, the Lady Vols head to No. 6 Louisville on Sunday. That match begins at 4 p.m. ET at the KFC Yum! Center, and the contest will be televised nationally on ESPN2.
