LEXINGTON, Ky. – The 21st-ranked Kentucky Wildcats volleyball team looks to bounce back on Friday evening, as the team will take on the Alabama Crimson Tide for the second time this season at 7 p.m. The match, set to take place in Foster Auditorium in Tuscaloosa, Ala., will be covered on SEC Network + by Hannah Chalker and Jordan Angeli and via radio on UKAthletics.com with Mandy Robbe on the call.
The last time Kentucky faced Alabama was on Oct. 4, when UK pulled out a 3-1 win at home. The Wildcats had to fend off a late charge by the visiting Tide who rallied to take set three and prolong the match. Kentucky logged 13 total blocks on the night – nine of which sophomore Kaz Brown was involved in. Junior Anni Thomasson registered her fourth double-double of the season to aid the Wildcat cause with 13 digs and 11 kills.
Last weekend, Kentucky extended its winning streak to nine straight with an exhilarating five set, 3-2 (22-25, 25-22, 23-25, 25-21, 15-12) win on the road against Auburn before dropping its first match of the SEC season, 3-1 (25-22, 21-25, 22-25, 20-25) on Sunday to the No. 17 Florida Gators.
Against Auburn, the Wildcats relied on an impressive defensive effort once again to earn the five-set win. The team registered 93 digs and 17 blocks – both season highs – to hold the Tigers to .144 hitting. Sophomores Ashley Dusek and Emily Franklin both contributed heavily to the effort with career nights. Dusek logged a career-best 40 digs during the night, setting a new program record for digs in a match and earning her SEC Player of the Week honors. Franklin had a career night with 10 blocks – including two solo stops. The Mesa, Ariz., native also added nine kills and four digs.
In the loss to Florida, Dusek had another impressive match for the Wildcats with a match-high 28 digs. Thomasson and senior setter Morgan Bergren both logged double-doubles for the Blue and White. Thomasson posted 11 kills and 12 digs, while Bergren registered 43 assists and 11 dug balls on the afternoon. Sophomore Darian Mack paced the attack with a team-best 14 kills, while Franklin notched a career-best 13 on a blazing .579 attacking percentage.
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