We Speak Volleyball
Brooklyn DeLeye Takes Kentucky’s All-Time Aces Record in a Career Weekend
Kentucky senior Brooklyn DeLeye hit.593 across two road wins and moved into first place on the Wildcats’ all-time aces list with 120, earning SEC Co-Offensive Player of the Week honors.
Kentucky’s record book has a new name at the top of the service game: Brooklyn DeLeye.
The senior outside hitter from Topeka, Kansas, was named SEC Co-Offensive Player of the Week presented by Allstate after hitting.593 — with only two errors on 54 attempts — across two Wildcat road wins, averaging 6.21 points and 4.86 kills per set.
At Oklahoma, DeLeye delivered 19 kills on a.600 hitting percentage, a career high for her in an SEC match, along with nine digs, four blocks, three aces and one assist. At Arkansas, she posted a double-double of 15 kills and 10 digs and added three more aces. Her six aces on the weekend lifted her career total to 120, moving her into first place on Kentucky’s all-time aces list.
She leads the SEC in aces at 0.52 per set this season, and she is far more than a serving specialist: her 309 kills rank fourth in the league at 4.48 per set, and her 5.27 points per set rank third.
DeLeye and the Wildcats (7-2 SEC, 15-4 overall) return home Sunday to host Texas A&M at 1 p.m. ET on ABC — a fitting showcase stage for Kentucky’s newest record holder.
Statistics via the SEC through matches of October 23.
We Speak Volleyball
Sunday in the SEC: Texas A&M at Kentucky on ABC Headlines a Slate Built to Break the Logjam
All eight SEC volleyball matches set for Sunday, October 25: Texas A&M at Kentucky on ABC, Florida defending first place, and the Vanderbilt-Tennessee clash of six-match win streaks.
Eight matches, one national broadcast window, and a standings logjam that cannot survive the day. Sunday, October 25 is the biggest day of the SEC volleyball season so far. (All times Eastern.)
The headliner: Texas A&M at Kentucky, 1 p.m. ET, ABC
Kentucky (7-2 SEC, 15-4 overall) gets the league’s ABC showcase at home, where the Wildcats are 8-0 this season. Kentucky is answering Wednesday’s five-set loss at Tennessee, and it brings the SEC’s top setter — Kassie O’Brien, at 11.62 assists per set and fresh off her 2,000th career assist — feeding Brooklyn DeLeye, who just became Kentucky’s all-time aces leader. Texas A&M (5-3, 12-8) walks in with momentum after Friday’s 3-1 win at Georgia, powered by Kyndal Stowers (4.36 kills per set) and Eliza Sharp, whose 1.35 blocks per set lead the SEC.
Florida defends the top spot: Ole Miss at Florida, 1 p.m. ET, SECN+
The Gators (7-1, 16-2) sit alone in first place and own the SEC’s stingiest defense, holding opponents to a.161 hitting percentage. Ole Miss (2-6) has dropped six straight, but Florida — 8-0 at home — has made a habit of closing the door early.
The 6-2 clash: Vanderbilt at Tennessee, 1 p.m. ET, SEC Network
Something has to give in Knoxville. Both Vanderbilt (6-2, 15-2) and Tennessee (6-2, 15-3) ride six-match win streaks, and both sit in a three-team tie for third with Georgia. Vanderbilt owns the league’s best team hitting percentage at.303; Tennessee just proved its five-set toughness against Kentucky. The winner strengthens its grip near the top — and keeps Florida in sight.
Missouri at Georgia, 2 p.m. ET, SECN+
Georgia (6-2, 14-4) needs a hold at home behind Bianna Muoneke, the SEC’s kills and points leader, who joined the Bulldogs’ 1,000-Kill Club last weekend. Missouri (5-3, 12-8) has won four straight and can tighten the middle of the table with a road upset.
The rest of the slate
Texas at South Carolina (1 p.m. ET, SECN+): the Longhorns (5-3, 9-7) look to steady themselves on the road against a South Carolina team (2-7, 9-10) fighting for footing. LSU at Auburn (3 p.m. ET, SECN+), Oklahoma at Alabama (3 p.m. ET, SECN+) and Arkansas at Mississippi State (3 p.m. ET, SECN+) round out the day — with Mississippi State (4-4, 14-5), the SEC’s top digging team at 15.63 digs per set, unbeaten at home in SEC play and looking to protect its floor.
By Sunday night, Florida’s challengers will have sorted themselves out — or tangled further. Either way, the road to the SEC’s top seed runs straight through this slate.
Schedule and statistics via the SEC through matches of October 23.
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