Senior Class Shines on Senior Day as No. 12 Kentucky Captures Eighth-Straight SEC Title

Thanks to a balanced effort from the senior class, the No. 12 Kentucky Volleyball team captured at least a share of an eighth-straight Southeastern Conference championship on Sunday afternoon, downing Arkansas in straight sets (26-24, 25-20, 25-13) on Senior Day inside Historic Memorial Coliseum.

The Kentucky seniors have been an integral part of the program since they first stepped on the court, a theme that continued in the match against the Razorbacks as seniors Emma Grome, Megan Wilson, Eleanor Beavin, and Erin Lamb all played key roles in the Cats’ sweep of Arkansas.

Following the match, UK head coach Craig Skinner attributed the team’s success to a staff dedicated to preparation, and a team of athletes who embraced the challenge involved in competing for a championship.

“I’ve gotta give a lot of credit to our staff,” Skinner said. “Our staff was unbelievable this year, Ben (Josephson), and Merideth (Jewell), and Madison (Lilley) did a hell of a job coaching this team and getting them prepared to play against great competition, so that’s the first thing.

“And the second thing, when you recruit athletes to compete for championships they know the expectations and the standards and that’s what they want. We’ve been shooting for the top ever since I’ve gotten here and we don’t wanna go anywhere else.”

Offensively, Grome paced the Kentucky attack to 40 total kills on a .312 hitting clip. Four Wildcats totaled six or more kills, led by sophomore Brooklyn DeLeye who finished with 13. It was Wilson who stole the show Sunday, however, as the senior right side found the floor with 12 kills on a sweltering .500 clip. In her second match back from injury, Lamb added seven kills to the winning cause and Jordyn Dailey totaled six.

Kentucky stifled the Razorbacks at the net as they racked up 8.0 rejections and held Arkansas to .130 hitting. In the third and final set, Arkansas totaled only four kills with three errors as the Cats coasted to the set and match victory. Brooke Bultema led the way with 5.0 blocks, Wilson had 4.0, Dailey finished with 3.0, and Grome and DeLeye each had a pair.

Molly Tuozzo continued to anchor the back line as she totaled 19 digs to lead all players. DeLeye added 11, Grome had 10, and Beavin had seven.

Beavin made her biggest impact from behind the service line, as the senior served up a match-high four aces. Lamb and DeLeye each had two of their own and Grome finished with one.

With the win, Kentucky improves to 19-7 on the season and 13-2 in the SEC. The victory locked up at least a share of the SEC title for the Cats for a program-best eighth-consecutive year.

UK will conclude the regular season on Wednesday as they travel to Columbia, Missouri for a matchup with No. 25 Missouri. If Kentucky leaves Columbia with a victory, they will claim the conference championship outright as Florida and Texas sit a game behind them in the standings. First serve against the Tigers is set for 7:00 pm ET.

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