Lady Vols win seven matches to close out Tar Heel Invitational

Lady Vols win seven matches to close out Tar Heel Invitational.

Tennessee’s women’s tennis team concluded the Tar Heel Invitational on a high note Sunday at Cone-Kenfield Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

Tennessee, which opened the final tune-up for the regular season with seven wins Friday, earned five singles wins Sunday.

Elza Tomase, Eleonora Molinaro, Esther Adshena, Daria Kuczer and Tenika McGriffin all won in singles competition.

Kuczer defeated teammate Callie Creath, 6-3, 6-1 and McGriffin, ranked No. 41 in the nation, upset No. 19 Fiona Crawley of North Carolina, 6-3, 6-4.

The Lady Vols also claimed a pair of wins in doubles as Adeshina and Molinaro downed the Tar Heels’ tandem of Lindsay Zink and Sara McClure, 6-0.

Tomase and Rebeka Martena  North Carolina’s team of Sophia Patel and Anika Yarlagadda, 6-1.

Jordan Horston leads Lady Vols past Ole Miss

Jordan Horston leads Tennessee past Ole Miss.

The Lady Vols won its sixth consecutive game, keeping a perfect Southeastern Conference record intact with a victory at Ole Miss Sunday.

No. 7 Tennessee (15-1, 4-0 SEC) overcame 22 turnovers to defeat the Rebels (14-2, 1-1 SEC), 70-58, at Sandy and John Black Pavilion in Oxford, Mississippi.

The Lady Vols, who led, 39-21, at halftime, boasted a balanced offensive attack as three UT players posted double figures in the scoring column.

Jordan Horston led the way with 20 points and 11 rebounds.

Alexus Dye added 17 points and Tess Darby finished with 13 for Tennessee, which had a 16-11 advantage at the end of the first quarter.

Ole Miss’ Shakira Austin led all scorers with 26 points.

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Lady Vols sweep doubles in Tar Heel Invitational

Lady Vols sweep doubles in Tar Heel Invitational.

The Tennessee women’s tennis team won seven matches on the first day of the Tar Heel Invitational in Chapel Hill, North Carolina Friday.

One match of opening day featured a pair of Lady Vols squaring off against each other in singles play. Callie Creath outlasted teammate Kylie Duckworth, 3-6, 7-5. 1-0. Creath clinched the match by winning a tiebreaker, 10-6.

Tennessee swept the doubles competition.

Daria Kuczer and Tenika McGriffin, playing only their second match as a doubles tandem, defeated the top-ranked doubles team in the country when they took down North Carolina’s Fiona Crawley and Elizabeth Scotty, 7-5.

Crawley and Scotty, are ranked No. 1 by the ITA and were undefeated before Friday.

Also in doubles, the Lady Vols’ Elza Tomase and Rebeka Mertena defeated UNC’s team of Anika Yarlagadda and Lindsay Zink, 6-2.

Tennessee’s tandem of Eleonora Molinaro and Esther Adishina also won in doubles.

Adeshina, Molinaro and Kuczer also captured wins in singles in the event, which concludes Sunday.

Lady Vols defeat Texas A&M, remain unbeaten in conference play

The Lady Vols defeat Texas A&M and remain unbeaten in conference play.

No. 7 Tennessee (14-1, 3-0 SEC) kept its undefeated Southeastern Conference record intact Thursday, defeating No. 25 Texas A&M, 73-45, at Thompson-Boling Arena.

The Lady Vols trailed, 21-20, at the end of the first quarter, but they outscored Texas A&M (10-4, 0-2 SEC), 22-7, in the second quarter.

Tennessee led, 42-28, at halftime.

Tennessee’s Jordan Horston led all scorers with 18 points and recorded a double-double, finishing with 13 rebounds.

Tamari Key and Rae Burrell each had nine points each.

Key had six rebounds and a career-high 11 blocks. Burrell, who recently returned from injury, played 17 minutes in her second game back after suffering a knee injury in Tennessee’s season opener.

Destiny Pitts led Texas A&M with 12 points.

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Lady Vols notch comeback victory at Arkansas

Lady Vols win at Arkansas.

The Lady Vols notched a comeback win on the road Sunday.

No. 7 Tennessee overcame a fourth-quarter deficit to notch a 70-63 Southeastern Conference victory over Arkansas at Bud Walton Arena in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

The Razorbacks (10-4, 0-1 SEC) trailed, 35-34, at halftime and rallied to take a 48-45 lead by the end of the third quarter.

Tennessee (13-1, 2-0 SEC) would outscore Arkansas, 25-15, over the final 10 minutes.

The Lady Vols had five players post double figures in the scoring column.

Tamari Key led Tennessee with 17 points. She also finished with seven rebounds and five blocks.

Alexus Dye recorded a double-double as she scored 13 points and had 10 rebounds.

Jordan, who missed Tennessee’s last two games due to a non-COVID-19 related illness, returned to UT’s lineup against the Razorbacks. She had 12 points, seven rebounds and five assists. Keyen Green had 11 points.

Rae Burrell, who suffered a knee injury in the Lady Vols’ season opener against Southern Illinois returned, scoring two points in limited action. She was 1-for-2 from the floor.

Arkansas’ Amber Ramirez led all scorers with 26 points.

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Lady Vols defeat Alabama to open conference play

The Lady Vols defeat Alabama to open conference play.

The Lady Vols opened Southeastern Conference play with a victory Thursday.

No. 7 Tennessee (12-1, 1-0 SEC) defeated Alabama (9-3, 0-1), 62-44, at Thompson-Boling Arena.

The Lady Vols outscored the Crimson Tide, 24-7, over the final 10 minutes en route to helping head coach Kellie Harper notch her 50th win at Tennessee.

Jordan Walker scored a game-high 16 points and had six assists for the Lady Vols, who led, 23-12, at the end of the first quarter.

Tamari Key posted a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds. She also recorded five blocks.

Tess Darby added nine points and Keyen Green finished with eight for Tennessee, which was without guard Jordan Horston. Horston missed her second consecutive game with a non-COVID-19 related illness.

Brittany Davis led the Crimson Tide with 12 points. Ja’Mya Mingo-Young finished with 11 points.

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Lady Vols defeat Chattanooga ahead of conference play

The Lady Vols defeat Chattanooga ahead of conference play.

No. 7 Tennessee (11-1) defeated Chattanooga, 91-51, victory Monday at Thompson-Boling Arena.

Tennessee opens Southeastern Conference Thursday against Alabama. Tipoff is slated for 6:30 p.m. EST at Thompson-Boling Arena.

The Lady Vols led 22-5 in the first quarter against Chattanooga (2-12).

Tamari Key scored a game-high 18 points and finished with seven rebounds and two blocks for Tennessee, which led 43-19 at halftime.

Alexus Dye added 15 points and eight rebounds, while Karoline Striplin totaled 12 points and nine rebounds.

The Lady Vols recorded 30 assists with Jordan Walker totaling eight. Tess Darby totaled nine points, six assists and five rebounds for Tennessee.

Jordan Horston missed the game for Tennessee due to a non-COVID-19 related illness.

Amaria Pugh led Chattanooga with 17 points. Abbey Cornelius totaled three points and seven rebounds for Chattanooga.

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Lady Vols host Chattanooga

Lady Vols host Chattanooga Monday.

No. 7 Tennessee (10-1) will host Chattanooga (2-11) at Thompson-Boling Arena Monday.

Tipoff is slated for 6:30 p.m. EST and the game will be broadcasted on SEC Network+. Bob Kesling and Madison Blevins Hock will serve on the television crew.

The contest will be the first between the two schools since 2015.

Chattanooga ended a nine-game losing streak Dec. 20, defeating UNC Asheville, 62-51.

Mocs’ junior forward Abbey Cornelius hails from Knoxville where she played for Hardin Valley Academy.

Cornelius was named District 4-AAA Tournament Most Valuable Player as she led the Lady Hawks to a district tournament title in 2017-18.

She started 24 games for Chattanooga last season and was a member of the Southern Conference Coaches All-Defensive Team.

Cornelius has been named SoCon’s Student-Athlete of the Week twice this season. In three recent games for the Mocs, Cornelius averaged 14 points, 9.7 rebounds and five blocked shots.

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Lady Vols defeat East Tennessee State

Tennessee defeats East Tennessee State.

After suffering its first loss of the season Saturday to No. 3 Stanford, the Lady Vols bounced back with a victory Monday.

No. 7 Tennessee (10-1) defeated East Tennessee State (1-10), 112-58, at Thompson-Boling Arena.

Tennessee opened a 24-13 lead in the first quarter.

The Lady Vols had six players post double figures in the scoring column. Freshman Sara Puckett led Tennessee with 19 points. Tamari Key scored 16 points and totaled seven rebounds. Keyen Green added 13 points.

Alexus Dye and Kaiya Wynn each had a double-double in the contest. Dye had 11 points and 11 rebounds. Wynn finished with 12 points, 10 rebounds and five assists.

Karoline Striplin also scored 10 points for the Lady Vols, who led, 51-25, at halftime.

Jakhyia Davis led East Tennessee State with 17 points and eight rebounds. Aaliyah Vananda added 12 points for the Buccaneers.

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Tennessee-East Tennessee State preview

Tennessee-East Tennessee State preview.

When East Tennessee State (1-10) plays the Lady Vols Monday at Thompson-Boling Arena, it will mark a homecoming for three former high school stars to Knoxville.

Aaliyah Vananda, Jakhyia Davis and Mykia Dowdell were all top prep players in the Knoxville area.

Vananda, a freshman guard, played both basketball and soccer at Maryville High School.

Vananda scored over 1,000 points in her career for the Rebels and was an all-district and all-region standout in both basketball and soccer. She was also an all-state nominee in soccer.

Davis, a freshman center for East Tennessee State, played at Bearden High School in Knoxville.

Davis was a four-year starter for the Bulldogs and was an all-district, all-region and all-state performer four times.

She played for the Buccaneers last season, appearing in all 20 games and making 15 starts.

Dowdell, a redshirt sophomore forward played at Oak Ridge High School.

Dowdell led the Wildcats to a pair of Class AAA state tournament appearances and was on the all-tournament team twice, making 132 consecutive starts during her career.

She began her college career at Middle Tennessee State.

Tipoff for Monday’s game is slated for 6:30 p.m. EST and the game will be televised on SEC Network+.