SKYHAWK VOLLEYBALL WELCOMES WAKE FOREST TRANSFER OLIVIA SAUNDERS
5/14/2021 9:30:00 AM | Volleyball, Beach Volleyball
MARTIN, Tenn. – Olivia Saunders, a 6-2 middle blocker who has spent the last four seasons at Wake Forest University, has committed to join the University of Tennessee at Martin volleyball program.
Saunders will be a redshirt junior this fall for the Skyhawks as she brings extensive high-level experience to head coach Jaclynn Wilson's squad.
"Olivia is about as competitive as they come," Wilson said. "I love that about her. We were looking for someone really specific to fill this role for us in the fall. We connected on a personal level and I am confident her on-court experience and physicality at the net will make an immediate impact in our gym."
Playing under head coaches Bill Ferguson and Randi Smart at Wake Forest, Saunders saw playing time in 47 matches and cracked the starting lineup 37 times during her tenure in Winston-Salem, NC. Over 172 sets, she delivered 313 kills (1.82 per set) on a .272 attack percentage while swatting away 155 blocks (0.90 per set) at the net. She ranks 10th all-time in Demon Deacon history in attack percentage with at least 300 career kills while her blocks per set average comes in at 11th place in Wake Forest history.
Saunders started in three of her five matches during the shortened six-match fall season in 2020, hitting a team-best .313 to go along with 2.36 kills and 0.71 blocks per set. In her final match of the season, she reeled off a career-best 14 kills on a sizzling .550 attack percentage (just three errors on 20 swings) and rejected a match-high five blocks against Clemson on Oct. 29. Overall, she hit .357 or better three times in only five opportunities as a redshirt junior.
In 2019, Saunders made eight starts while playing in 15 matches. She hit a career-best .338 on the season while tallying 1.88 kills and 0.84 blocks per set. Her best match of the season came on Nov. 27 against North Carolina when she amassed a season-best 13 kills, a .650 attack percentage (no errors in 20 attempts) and a career-high eight blocks. Overall, she cracked double figures in the kill column on four separate occasions while her season-high .818 hitting percentage came against Mercer on Sept. 6 (nine kills with no miscues on 11 swings). She had more than four blocks in six different matches, equaling her career-high of eight swats against North Florida on Sept. 6.
As a redshirt freshman, Saunders started in 26 out of her 27 matches, accounting for a team-best 96 blocks (0.96 per set) and 1.71 kills per set on a .229 attack percentage. She collected seven or more kills in a dozen matches with her season-high of 10 rally killers (.500 hitting percentage, one error on 18 attempts) coming against Boston College on Sept. 30. She hit a season-best .636 with eight kills (one error in 11 swings) against Miami on Sept. 21 and dialed up 13 matches with at least four blocks – including a season-high seven rejections against Clemson on Nov. 16. In Atlantic Coast Conference play, she upped her blocking statistics to an even 1.00 block per set during her debut season.
Saunders, who hails from Ontario, Canada, is set to be the first Canadian to don a UT Martin volleyball jersey since Alanna Watt in 2015. Saunders prepped at Iona Catholic Secondary School and St. Francis of Assisi Catholic and competed on the Canada Junior National Team. She was one of only two U16 athletes invited to attend an identification for a "Quest for Gold" card that Volleyball Canada utilizes to identify athletes with national team potential.
Saunders joins Kristin Phillips (Fr., MB, Orient, Ohio) and Hannah Haislip (Fr., S, Gates, Tenn.) as additions for the 2021 Skyhawk volleyball season.
Saunders will be a redshirt junior this fall for the Skyhawks as she brings extensive high-level experience to head coach Jaclynn Wilson's squad.
"Olivia is about as competitive as they come," Wilson said. "I love that about her. We were looking for someone really specific to fill this role for us in the fall. We connected on a personal level and I am confident her on-court experience and physicality at the net will make an immediate impact in our gym."
Playing under head coaches Bill Ferguson and Randi Smart at Wake Forest, Saunders saw playing time in 47 matches and cracked the starting lineup 37 times during her tenure in Winston-Salem, NC. Over 172 sets, she delivered 313 kills (1.82 per set) on a .272 attack percentage while swatting away 155 blocks (0.90 per set) at the net. She ranks 10th all-time in Demon Deacon history in attack percentage with at least 300 career kills while her blocks per set average comes in at 11th place in Wake Forest history.
Saunders started in three of her five matches during the shortened six-match fall season in 2020, hitting a team-best .313 to go along with 2.36 kills and 0.71 blocks per set. In her final match of the season, she reeled off a career-best 14 kills on a sizzling .550 attack percentage (just three errors on 20 swings) and rejected a match-high five blocks against Clemson on Oct. 29. Overall, she hit .357 or better three times in only five opportunities as a redshirt junior.
In 2019, Saunders made eight starts while playing in 15 matches. She hit a career-best .338 on the season while tallying 1.88 kills and 0.84 blocks per set. Her best match of the season came on Nov. 27 against North Carolina when she amassed a season-best 13 kills, a .650 attack percentage (no errors in 20 attempts) and a career-high eight blocks. Overall, she cracked double figures in the kill column on four separate occasions while her season-high .818 hitting percentage came against Mercer on Sept. 6 (nine kills with no miscues on 11 swings). She had more than four blocks in six different matches, equaling her career-high of eight swats against North Florida on Sept. 6.
As a redshirt freshman, Saunders started in 26 out of her 27 matches, accounting for a team-best 96 blocks (0.96 per set) and 1.71 kills per set on a .229 attack percentage. She collected seven or more kills in a dozen matches with her season-high of 10 rally killers (.500 hitting percentage, one error on 18 attempts) coming against Boston College on Sept. 30. She hit a season-best .636 with eight kills (one error in 11 swings) against Miami on Sept. 21 and dialed up 13 matches with at least four blocks – including a season-high seven rejections against Clemson on Nov. 16. In Atlantic Coast Conference play, she upped her blocking statistics to an even 1.00 block per set during her debut season.
Saunders, who hails from Ontario, Canada, is set to be the first Canadian to don a UT Martin volleyball jersey since Alanna Watt in 2015. Saunders prepped at Iona Catholic Secondary School and St. Francis of Assisi Catholic and competed on the Canada Junior National Team. She was one of only two U16 athletes invited to attend an identification for a "Quest for Gold" card that Volleyball Canada utilizes to identify athletes with national team potential.
Saunders joins Kristin Phillips (Fr., MB, Orient, Ohio) and Hannah Haislip (Fr., S, Gates, Tenn.) as additions for the 2021 Skyhawk volleyball season.
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