Tonight in Knoxville, Tenn., Duke hopes to kick-start another deep NCAA tournament run to follow up on last year’s quarterfinal appearance.
The Blue Devils (21-8) will face fourteenth-seeded Tennessee at 7 p.m. in hostile territory at Thompson-Boling Arena for the first round of this year’s tournament.
Duke comes into the tilt on a four-match winning streak, including a Nov. 13 victory against then-No. 17 Florida State. The team found out Sunday it would be traveling to Knoxville in the opening round.
The Lady Volunteers (27-3) enter the contest with a 12-match winning streak and an SEC championship.
“They’re a very good team, and they’ve had a great year, so I think it’s going to be an exciting match,” Blue Devils’ head coach Jolene Nagel said. “We have some seniors who have been playing since they were freshmen on the court, and they’re excited for this challenge.
“I do think our team rises to the challenge, and we certainly will do that this weekend.”
Tennessee head coach Rob Patrick echoed Nagel’s sentiments, saying that he expects a very strong performance from Duke and thinks the match will be a competitive one.
“I think both teams are playing at a really high level right now,” Patrick said. “You can’t really concentrate on any one hitter against Duke because they have a great, experienced setter who really sets a lot of different people in their offense. We’re going to have to really play very disciplined defense, and we’re not going to know where they’re going to go to at times.”
Patrick also brought up the experience the Blue Devils have on their side. Duke features a starting team full of upperclassmen, including many who saw action in last year’s quarterfinal run, and Tennessee features a lineup of mostly freshmen and sophomores.
“[Duke is] comfortable going on the road playing against very good teams and winning in the NCAA tournament,” Patrick said. “There isn’t anything we’re going to do that is going to rattle them, and they’re a very good volleyball team that plays the game very well and doesn’t make a lot of errors.”
Despite having strong leadership and veterans on their side, the Blue Devils are not overlooking their younger opponents and know they must counter the Volunteers’ physicality on the court.
“They have a lot of size on their team, so one thing that maybe can help us is if we can really control our serve and serve really tough, so hopefully we don’t give them so many options that they’d really love to go at,” Nagel said. “They are a big team, a great attacking team and they have an excellent setter who gets her hitters the ball, so us being able to touch balls on the block will be very important so we can play some defense.”
This is the Blue Devils’ seventh straight NCAA tournament appearance, and the team is seeking to add to its tally of 12 tournament wins, the best mark of any ACC school.
“It’s exciting to know that Duke has earned that recognition,” said Nagel, who has led Duke to a tournament berth in 10 of her 13 seasons in Durham. “[The players] want more on their resume, and I think that’s what motivates them and what makes Duke such a special place because the people want to be challenged and want to go after it.”
If the Blue Devils notch the victory, they will face the winner of Ohio State and Middle Tennessee Friday in Knoxville.
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