No. 3 Cardinals Travel to No. 13 Kentucky For Battle of the Bluegrass

LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- No. 3 University of Louisville volleyball travels to in-state rival No. 13 Kentucky in the Battle of the Bluegrass on Wednesday, Sept. 14 at 7:00 p.m. ET at Memorial Coliseum.

Louisville and Kentucky have met 57 times in their rivalry, dating back to 1976 with UK leading the series. Last year, the two teams met in the L&N Federal Credit Arena for an intense five set match. Louisville won the contest 3-2 with a score of 15-9 in the fifth set. So far this season the Wildcats are 5-2 with their two losses coming from Marquette and No. 4 Wisconsin. With Craig Skinner in his 18th season, Kentucky finished the 2021 season 25-5 falling in the second round of the NCAA Tournament to Illinois. The Wildcats have made 17 straight appearances in the NCAA Tournament and were picked in the preseason to win the SEC. Four Wildcats were nominated on the All-SEC Preseason Team. Reagan Rutherford, Azhani Tealer, and Adanna Rollins have played a role in the 5-2 start to the season. Junior Rutherford, a 6-0 right side, has recorded 95 kills so far this season hitting .371. Named the SEC Player of the Week on Sept. 5, she has 13 aces, 55 digs, and 23 blocks. Senior Tealer is a 5-10 middle blocker for the Wildcats and has 40 kills and 20 blocks this season. A 6-0 transfer from Penn State, outside hitter Rollins has 83 kills, 8 aces, 56 digs, and 9 blocks through seven matches.

The Cardinals are coming off a double sweep weekend against No. 10 Purdue and Lipscomb to make their record 7-1. Aiko Jones and Elena Scott were named to the All-Louisville Invitational Team. Jones was one of three Cardinals with 16 kills or more through both matches this weekend. Anna DeBeer and Claire Chaussee added 16 kills and 21 kills, respectively. Scott notched 31 digs and three aces this weekend. On Friday in front of an electric crowd, UofL came from behind after Purdue hit set point at 24-19 to win 27-25. Against Lipscomb, the Cardinals had 14 different players play and recorded 10 blocks as a team.

Team Rankings
As a team, Louisville is ranked first in the ACC in hitting percentage (.310) and second in opponent hitting percentage (.147), first in blocks (79 total) and blocks per set (3.04), and second in service aces per set (2.31).

Cardinals in the ACC Rankings
Amaya Tillman – 2nd in blocks with 1.43 blocks/set
Raquel Lazaro – 4th in assists with 9.60 assists/set
Elena Scott - in digs with 4.23 digs/set
Anna DeBeer - 5th in Service aces with 0.50 aces/set

NCAA Team Rankings
Hitting Percentage: No. 5 (.310)
Aces: No. 12 (2.31)
Blocks/Set: No. 5 (3.04)

Reloading from Historic 2021 Run
In 2022, statistically, the Cardinals return:
Kills: 74%
Service Aces: 72%
Points: 72%
Digs: 83%
Blocks: 62%

Louisville at Home
Sets Lost Matches Lost
Last Season: 6 0
This Season: 4 1

Battle of the Bluegrass
The win over Kentucky in 2021 was the first time the two teams clashed while both were ranked in the Top 10 and snapped a 7-match losing streak to the Cats. The longest winning streak for the Cards over the Cats was 10 from 1994-98 and 9 straight from 1999-2005.

Jones, Scott Named All Louisville Invite
Aiko Jones and Elena Scott were named to the All-Louisville Invitational team for the Cardinals, who went 2-0 over the weekend.

No. 3 Cardinals Travel to No. 13 Kentucky For Battle of the Bluegrass

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Players Mentioned

Claire Chaussee

Anna DeBeer

Aiko Jones

Raquel Lazaro

Elena Scott

Amaya Tillman

University of Louisville Athletics