Thursday, October 2
St. Charles, Mo.
6 p.m.
UT Martin
1-13,0-3OVC
0
at
3
Lindenwood
5-6,1-2OVC
1
2
3
F
UT Martin
29
22
21
0
Lindenwood
31
25
25
3
UT Martin Drops Series Opener Against Defending OVC Tournament Champion Lindenwood
10/2/2025 9:15:00 PM | Volleyball
ST. CHARLES, Mo. – The University of Tennessee at Martin volleyball team received many quality individual performances tonight but the Skyhawks fell in three sets (29-31, 22-25, 21-25) to Ohio Valley Conference rival Lindenwood.
Abby Freund was the leader of the UT Martin defense this evening, coming away with 17 digs. Kylie Surratt also managed her third double-double of the 2025 campaign with 11 kills and 12 digs. Offensively, Kayla Bryant posted a season-best 14 kills while Ava Peters (31 assists) and Dylan Sulcer (career-high three service aces) pitched in significant contributions against a Lion squad that won 23 matches on the way to an OVC Tournament title last fall.
The match included 23 tie scores and 12 lead changes as both sides grappled for early momentum in a marathon first set. A Surratt kill opened the scoring on both sides as the sophomore out of Maryland Heights, Mo. accounted for three of the Skyhawks' first six kills. Lindenwood eventually went ahead by a 17-10 margin but UT Martin clawed back – eventually putting itself in position for set point on five separate occasions. The last opportunity came after a Kristin Phillips kill made the score 29-28 in favor of the Skyhawks but the Lions ended the set with three straight points. Bryant (.462 hitting percentage) and Surratt (eight digs) each accounted for seven kills apiece in the first set.
A kill by Phillips helped UT Martin take an early lead in the second stanza before Lindenwood claimed a 9-5 advantage. The Skyhawk deficit remained at four points (20-16) until UT Martin turned things around following a timeout. Surratt landed a pair of kills to help the Skyhawks pull within a single point at 22-21 but the Lions scored three of the final four points in the set. Bryant (four kills), Peters (10 assists) and Freund (six digs) led UT Martin in the middle set.
Another back-and-forth set followed as the third stanza featured 12 tie scores and six lead changes. A solo block from Maddy Gladson gave the Skyhawks their first lead of the set before a Phillips kill nudged UT Martin ahead by a 9-7 margin. Following an 8-3 Lindenwood run, the Skyhawks reclaimed the lead at 18-17 after a Bryant kill. Four more ties followed – as late as 21-all – but the Lions closed out the set with four unanswered points. Freund had nearly half (six) of UT Martin's 13 digs in the last stanza.
These two squads conclude their two-match series tomorrow at 6 p.m.
Abby Freund was the leader of the UT Martin defense this evening, coming away with 17 digs. Kylie Surratt also managed her third double-double of the 2025 campaign with 11 kills and 12 digs. Offensively, Kayla Bryant posted a season-best 14 kills while Ava Peters (31 assists) and Dylan Sulcer (career-high three service aces) pitched in significant contributions against a Lion squad that won 23 matches on the way to an OVC Tournament title last fall.
The match included 23 tie scores and 12 lead changes as both sides grappled for early momentum in a marathon first set. A Surratt kill opened the scoring on both sides as the sophomore out of Maryland Heights, Mo. accounted for three of the Skyhawks' first six kills. Lindenwood eventually went ahead by a 17-10 margin but UT Martin clawed back – eventually putting itself in position for set point on five separate occasions. The last opportunity came after a Kristin Phillips kill made the score 29-28 in favor of the Skyhawks but the Lions ended the set with three straight points. Bryant (.462 hitting percentage) and Surratt (eight digs) each accounted for seven kills apiece in the first set.
A kill by Phillips helped UT Martin take an early lead in the second stanza before Lindenwood claimed a 9-5 advantage. The Skyhawk deficit remained at four points (20-16) until UT Martin turned things around following a timeout. Surratt landed a pair of kills to help the Skyhawks pull within a single point at 22-21 but the Lions scored three of the final four points in the set. Bryant (four kills), Peters (10 assists) and Freund (six digs) led UT Martin in the middle set.
Another back-and-forth set followed as the third stanza featured 12 tie scores and six lead changes. A solo block from Maddy Gladson gave the Skyhawks their first lead of the set before a Phillips kill nudged UT Martin ahead by a 9-7 margin. Following an 8-3 Lindenwood run, the Skyhawks reclaimed the lead at 18-17 after a Bryant kill. Four more ties followed – as late as 21-all – but the Lions closed out the set with four unanswered points. Freund had nearly half (six) of UT Martin's 13 digs in the last stanza.
These two squads conclude their two-match series tomorrow at 6 p.m.
Team Stats
UTM
Linden
Kills
38
41
Errors
27
20
Attempts
129
121
Hitting %
.085
.174
Points
49.0
49.0
Assists
35
40
Aces
5
3
Blocks
6
5
Game Leaders
Kills
14
Aces
0
Blocks
0
Kills
11
Aces
1
Blocks
2
Kills
5
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
4
Aces
0
Blocks
0
Players Mentioned
OH
/ Volleyball
L/DS
/ Volleyball
OPP
/ Volleyball
S
/ VolleyballMB
/ Volleyball
DS/S
/ VolleyballOH
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