MADISON, WIS. – No. 7 seed Georgia Tech volleyball (21-9, 12-8 ACC) continues its 2024 season after knocking out the Tennessee Volunteers (15-12, 11-0 SEC) in round one of the NCAA Volleyball Tournament on Thursday night in five-set fashion. Tamara Otene had the performance of a season with a career-high 33 kills, the most kills by a Yellow Jacket in an NCAA appearance under the direction of Michelle Collier. Bianca Bertolino also showed-out on Thursday’s match with a career-high 25 kills.
QUICK HITS
- Otene becomes the second Yellow Jacket to record 30+ kills in a NCAA Tournament match while Collier is at the helm. Julia Bergmann was the first with 31 kills against Lipscomb in the 2021 season.
- Her 15 digs against Tennessee earned Otene her 13th double-double of the season, 35th overall. Otene has earned a double-double in all of Tech’s last four contests.
- This was the fourth match this season Otene hit .400 or higher.
- Bertolino’s 25 kills are the third most in an NCAA Tournament match by a Collier-coached Yellow Jacket.
- Her 25 kills and 15 digs earned the Argentinian her 17th double-double this season, 34th overall as well as brought her to 24 games with double-digit kills this season.
- Sofia Velez has now recorded 10 or more digs in 104 of her 110 collegiate matches after posting 19 digs against the Volunteers
- Bertolino’s performance put her just shy of the 400-kill mark this season (398) while Otene sits with 443.
- Luanna Emiliano led the team as far as assists with 37, the third most by a Tech player in the NCAA Tournament under Collier, while Heloise Soares recorded a season-high 28 assists in the Jackets’ 5-2 rotation.
- Emiliano’s 37 assists and 13 digs earned the setter her 12th double-double of the season, 79th of her career.
- Liv Mogridge and Logan Wiley tied the Yellow Jacket modern scoring era record for blocks in a NCAA Tournament with five respectively.
- As a team, Tech recorded a season-high 79 kills and 76 assists.
- The Yellow Jackets also had their second highest number of total attempts (194) and third highest number of digs (81).
- This is the second time Georgia Tech has gone to five-sets in a NCAA Tournament match.
- The Yellow Jackets tied their modern scoring era record for points in an NCAA Tournament match, 111, which was previously set against Florida in the 2023 season.
- This was Tech’s fifth consecutive five-set match, 11th five-set match this season.
Photos by Ricky Bassman
Tech Volleyball versus Tennessee in Round One of the NCAA Tournament
SET BY SET
Set 1 (GT 25- TEN 18)
Set one saw a tight matchup between the Yellow Jackets and the Volunteers, with neither team getting further than two-points away from the other. With the match tied 12-12, Tech went on to outscore Tennessee 9-1 and take a commanding lead halfway through set one. Tech’s 18 kills, .316 attack percentage, was too much for Tennessee to contain while its defensive efforts produced not only 17 digs but also a 1.000 reception percentage. Seniors Bertolino (7) and Otene (6) led the Jackets’ offense while the freshman Wiley contributed four kills to Tech’s set one total. Defensively, Velez was exceptional, making seven digs alongside four other Jackets who recorded multiple kills in set one. Emiliano and Soares shared the job of assisting on offense with eight respectively.
Set 2 (GT 13 – TEN 25)
In the second set, Tech tried to match Tennessee on offense, but was edged out by 15 kills and .438 attack percentage. The Yellow Jackets tried to keep the match close, but the Volunteers were able to stack points against Tech throughout the second set up until the score was 22-10. Back-to-back kills from Otene seemed to bring Tech’s offense bac to life, but the Yellow Jackets couldn’t keep the Volunteers from taking set two. Otene marked another five kills in set two while Bertolino, Mogridge, and Wiley recorded two apiece. Despite dropping set two, Emiliano had a decent set two showing with six assists and five digs.
Set 3 (GT 32- TEN 30)
With the match tied, 1-1, set three was the most intense set of the match, featuring six lead changes and 20 ties before the Yellow Jackets came out on top. Tech’s offense was slightly more accurate than Tennessee’s with a .233 attack percentage compared to the Volunteers’ .205. Otene notched 50% of Tech’s 20 kills on her own; Bertolino contributed five as well in set three. Despite a single defensive error tainting Tech’s reception percentage, the Yellow Jackets made 18 digs, compared to Tennessee’s 10. Bertolino was as dangerous on defense as she was on offense with five digs while Emiliano had four as well. DeAndra Pierce was solid at the net, recording four block assists, as was Mogridge with three.
Set 4 (GT 26- TEN 28)
Set four saw a battle similar to set three with 12 ties and six lead changes. Although the Jackets recorded more kills (19-17), assists (18-17), and digs (21-19), several offensive errors forced Tech to drop set four. Bertolino boasted a .400 attack percentage along with seven kills. Otene remained consistent through set four, recording nine kills with a .389 attack percentage. Emiliano was credited with nine-of-18 of Tech’s set four assists. Eight Yellow Jackets recorded digs for a match-high 21 digs.
Set 5 (GT 15 – TEN 12)
In the fifth and final set, Tennessee established an early lead and forced Tech to play catch up until a four-point scoring run gave Tech the 11-9 lead. The Vols responded quickly, tying the match 11-11. Back-to-back kills from Wiley kept the Yellow Jackets in the lead and forced Tennessee to take a timeout. The Vols scored one final point before two more Otene kills secured the round one victory. Otene capped her impressive performance with three finals kills while Bertolino recorded four kills. Both Emiliano and Soares finished the final set with four assists respectively.
UP NEXT
The Yellow Jackets will advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament and face No. 2 seed Wisconsin Friday, Dec. 6, at 8:00 p.m. ET in the UW Field House in Madison, Wis. The match is set to be streamed on ESPN+.
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