Skyhawks Down Tennessee State On Senior Day

Friday, November 14

Martin, Tenn.

4 p.m.

UT Martin

4-23,3-13OVC

Tennessee State

1-30,0-18OVC

Tennessee St.

UT Martin

Skyhawks Down Tennessee State On Senior Day

11/14/2025 8:14:00 PM | Volleyball

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MARTIN, Tenn. – Playing in its 2025 home finale, the University of Tennessee at Martin volleyball squad fended off a feisty Tennessee State team today via 3-2 triumph (25-18, 19-25, 25-16, 25-27, 15-7) at Skyhawk Fieldhouse.

Moments after UT Martin four-year letterwinners Kayla Bryant and Kristin Phillips were honored for their career contributions as part of a Senior Day ceremony, the two seniors delivered with clutch performances. Bryant went off for a career-best 23 kills on a phenomenal .409 hitting percentage (just five errors in 44 swings) to go along with a team-high 16 digs for her 10^th double-double of the season. Phillips also had a hot hand with nine kills on a .350 attack percentage (only two errors in 20 attempts) with a match-high six blocks.

Kylie Surratt (11 kills), Ava Peters (47 assists), Dylan Sulcer (14 digs) and Abby Freund (14 digs) also played a major part in leading the Skyhawks to a season sweep over the Tigers as the match featured 24 tie scores and 10 lead changes.

A Phillips kill fittingly got the match started but Tennessee State took a 5-2 lead. Another Phillips kill started an 8-3 UT Martin run to give the Skyhawks the upper hand. Tennessee State closed to within one point (15-14) but UT Martin never relinquished the lead, ending the set with six of the final seven points – three of which came off Phillips kills (including the set-clincher). Phillips had five kills on five swings for a perfect 1.000 hitting percentage in the opening set.

The Skyhawks claimed a 6-3 advantage in the second set and still led by three points (11-8) before a 6-1 Tiger run flipped the momentum. Three kills from Bryant plus rally killers out of Peters and Ella McFarland knotted the score at 18-all but Tennessee State concluded the set on a 7-1 run. Bryant (.429 hitting percentage) and Surratt (only one error) each had four kills for UT Martin in the second stanza.

Maddy Gladson gave the Skyhawks a spark in the third set, hammering down UT Martin's first two kills as part of a 5-1 lead. The Tigers would not get any closer than two points the rest of the way as the Skyhawks closed out the set in dominant fashion. A Phillips service ace made the score 17-8 and forced Tennessee State to burn a timeout before Gladson (kill, solo block) notched the final two points of the stanza. Gladson had four kills on six tries (.667 attack percentage) and a pair of blocks in the middle set.

The fourth set alone included nine ties and six lead changes as the Tigers clawed back to send the match into a decisive fifth set. UT Martin led by a 12-8 margin but Tennessee State answered with eight of the next nine points. A kill from Carly Mueller wrapped up a lengthy Skyhawk run and gave UT Martin a 21-18 edge but the Tigers continually battled back to extend the match, cashing in on their third shot at set point. Bryant had six kills in the fourth set alone to pace the Skyhawks.

In the winner-take-all final stanza, UT Martin left little doubt – reeling off the first nine points. Bryant was the main culprit of the blazing start with four kills on her own. Tennessee State would not get any closer than six points down the stretch as the Skyhawk defense held them to -.143 hitting (five kills against eight errors) in 21 swings. Bryant owned five of UT Martin's six kills in the fifth set.

The Skyhawks go on the road for their final two matches of the season, traveling to Morehead State for matchups on Tuesday, Nov. 18 and Wednesday, Nov. 19.