Emma Grome Records 3,000th Career Assist, No. 22 UK Beats Missouri in Four

Thanks to another stellar offensive performance from freshman outside hitter Brooklyn DeLeye, the No. 22 Kentucky volleyball team picked up a third-straight victory Friday night, downing the Missouri Tigers in four sets in Columbia (25-19, 25-21, 23-25, 26-24). 

With senior Reagan Rutherford out for a fifth-straight match, DeLeye stepped up to the plate for the Cats once again as she totaled 18 kills with only three errors on a .375 clip. With Friday night’s result, it’s the fourth time in five Southeastern Conference matches that DeLeye has finished a match with 18 or more kills. 

But it wasn’t just DeLeye who saw success offensively against the Tigers as four Wildcats eclipsed double figures. Azhani Tealer added 16 kills, Megan Wilson and Elise Goetzinger each had 12, and Jordyn Williams had 9.

Junior setter Emma Grome recorded her 3,000^th career assist in the match and finished the evening with 57 assists. The Cats totaled 69 total kills through four sets and hit on a .344 clip. 

Defensively, junior libero Eleanor Beavin had one of her best matches of the season as she picked up a match-high 23 digs. DeLeye and Grome each had ten, Molly Tuozzo added nine and Audrey Whitworth had six. 

With the win, Kentucky improves to 6-7 on the season and 4-1 in SEC play. They’ll be back in action Sunday at home to take on Ole Miss inside Rupp Arena. First serve against the Rebels is set for 1:30 pm ET and will be broadcast live on SEC Network+.