Barring any postponed matches being rescheduled, this is the last road weekend of the 2020-21 season for the Lady Vols, who take on Alabama on Friday and Saturday.

Tennessee is 38-18 all-time vs Alabama. UT is 5-5 in the last ten meetings and 6-4 in the last ten meetings in Tuscaloosa. The Lady Vols have a three-match winning streak in the series.

Excluding matches vs Auburn, who opted out of playing the second half of the season, Alabama is one of only four SEC teams who haven’t had a match cancelled or postponed due to COVID.

In their last match, Alabama’s Riley Fisbeck earned the first triple-double of the season in the SEC with 12 kills, 11 digs, and 14 assists in a loss vs Texas A&M.

Tennessee ranks in the top four in the conference in hitting, kills, blocks, and digs. They’re in the top four in the conference in stopping opponents in hitting, blocks, aces, and digs.

UT CONFERENCE STATISTICAL RANKS
	aces	assists	blocks	digs	kills	hitting
TEAM OFFENSE	12	6	3	2	3	4
TEAM DEFENSE	3	4	3	9	6	4

Alabama head coach Lindsey Devine joined the Tide after a 16-year stint just up the road at ETSU. She ended her run there as their all-time winningest coach. In 2013, she snapped a 19 match losing streak to the Lady Vols dating back to 1979. In her next meeting vs Tennessee in 2018, she gave Eve Rackham her first ever loss as a head coach.

Devine’s daughter and current assistant coach, Megan Ailshie, was a member of the Bucs team that broke their losing streak. Her 27 kills in the match is the 15th most by a UT opponent since 2001.

Someone on Reddit this week noticed that “of Tennessee’s 16 division I sports, 14 of them are either ranked or receiving votes”.

Baseball – #10 (USA Today Coaches’ Poll)
Men’s Basketball – RV (AP Poll)
Women’s Basketball – #13 (AP Poll)
Men’s Golf – #19 (Bushnell/Golfweek Coaches’ Poll)
Rowing – #8 (Pocock/CRCA Poll)
Soccer – RV (United Soccer Coaches’ Poll)
Softball – #21 (USA Today/NFCA Coaches’ Poll)
Men’s Swimming & Diving – #11 (CSCAA Poll)
Women’s Swimming & Diving – #11 (CSCAA Poll)
Men’s Tennis – #5 (Oracle/ITA Poll)
Women’s Tennis – #21 (Oracle/ITA Poll)
Men’s Track & Field/XC – #9 (USTFCCCA Rating Index)
Women’s Track & Field/XC – #40 (USTFCCCA Rating Index)
Volleyball – RV (AVCA Coaches’ Poll)

Tuscaloosa AL
ALABAMA
Friday, March 19th, 7:00pm ET	Stats | Video
Saturday, March 20th, 3:00pm ET	Stats | Video