Volleyball returns home to host Alabama A&M

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — Chattanooga volleyball returns home this week to kick off a six-game Mocs home opener beginning Tuesday, Oct. 8, when UTC takes on Alabama A&M in a non-conference game.

The Mocs want to get back to winning ways against the Bulldogs. Tuesday's game will be the second time this season that these two teams will meet on the volleyball court. The previous game, held Sept. 1 in Huntsville, ended in a 3-0 win for Chattanooga.

Tuesday's game is scheduled to begin at 6:00 p.m. ET and fans will have both live stats and an ESPN+ stream available. Admission to the game, as well as all Chattanooga volleyball games, is free. Tuesday night will also serve as “Get’cha Head in the Game Night,” inspired by High School Musical.

GAME CENTRAL
Tuesday, October 8th | vs. Alabama A&M | 6pm ET | Statistics | Electricity

HISTORY OF THE SERIES
Alabama A&M: 8-1 (Last time: September 1, 2024 – 3-0 W)

GALLENTINE MAKES HISTORY
Libero Paige Gallentine UTC's game at Wofford earlier this season officially moved her into second place all-time in Chattanooga's career digs rankings, with Gallentine now sitting at 2,378 career digs during her time at UTC. Considering that Lara Newberry, who sits atop not only the UTC Career Digs leaderboard, but the entire NCAA Career Digs leaderboard, in both the 30-point set and rally scoring era, this means that Gallentine is officially the program's all-time leader in career digs for the modern era of scoring (25-point set, sideout scoring). Gallentine needs 111 more digs to officially enter the NCAA's all-time top 25 in career digs and currently leads all of NCAA Division I on the active career digs list.

GOAL BED THOMAS NEARS VICTORY NO. 50
UTC head coach and volleyball director Julie Torbett Thomas is on the verge of a milestone as a coach in Chattanooga, as her third year in the scenic city is now in full swing and Torbett Thomas inches ever closer to the 50-win mark as UTC head coach. Torbett Thomas actively holds a 44-38 record with Chattanooga, a win total that currently ranks fourth all-time in program history. Torbett Thomas is currently in her 31st season coaching collegiate volleyball and her coaching record is 512-442.

ONE OF THE BEST IN THE NCAA
Senior setter Elaine Redman was on a war footing to open the year for the Mocs. As of October 6, Redman ranks sixth in all of Division I in total assists this season, with the Chattanooga native recording 651 assists on the young season. Redman is currently averaging 40.69 per game and 10.07 per set on the year. She ranks 44th nationally in assists/set and second in the SoCon.

THE RACE FOR THE SOCON RECORD
This year's Chattanooga team features not one, but two of the program's most decorated players competing in their final season of eligibility. setter Elaine Redman and libero Paige Gallentine have quickly become two of the most decorated UTC volleyball players of all time, and the two are currently tied for the program record for the most SoCon Player of the Week awards in a career. Each has won a total of seven POTW awards, with Redman having already collected two this season, matching Gallentine's career total. The Southern Conference record holder for most POTW awards won in a single career is Georgia Southern's Martina Veiglova (2001-03), who finished with a total of nine Player of the Week awards.

ABOUT ALABAMA A&M
It was a slow start to the 2024 season for Alabama A&M, as the Bulldogs entered their game against the Mocs with a 3-12 record on the year. Tuesday's game actually marks the second time this season that these two teams have met, after Chattanooga earned a 3-0 win over the Bulldogs in Huntsville earlier this year. Since the Sept. 1 game against UTC, the Bulldogs have won just one of their 12 games, a 3-0 win over SWAC foe Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Sept. 30. Alabama A&M needs the duo of Fatima Ramirez and Saldy Amparo-Smith If the Bulldogs want to keep up with the Mocs on Tuesday night, they'll be going big, as Ramirez currently leads the team with 159 kills this season, while Amparo-Smith has 136 of his own Kills is close behind her.

CAREER MILESTONE WATCH
– Elaine Redman has officially moved into seventh place in all-time career assists for Chattanooga after recording 2,525 assists during her time with the Mocs. Redman now has 70 fewer assists than Emily McGinnis (2001-03) in sixth place on the program's all-time list.
-Redman's career assist total currently stands at 3,582 when factoring in her time in Toledo. She is ranked 31st in the NCAA Division I active career assistant rankings.
– Paige Gallentine needs 111 digs to officially enter the NCAA's all-time top 25 in career digs. She currently has 2,378 points, which ranks second all-time in program history.
– Gallentine now officially ranks seventh in program history in career aces with 116. She only needs two more to tie Kylie Hunter (1990-93) for sixth place all-time. The next highest Moc would be Heather Gibson (1989-92), who had 120.
– Marcelle Baez Carlo needs a total of 38 blocks to officially enter the UTC top 10 career blocks (she currently has 232).
– Baez-Carlo is also 12 block assists shy of being included in the UTC top 10 list.
– Julie Torbett Thomas needs six more wins to reach 50 wins as head coach in Chattanooga. She currently has 512 all-time head coaching wins.
– Redman is three aces away from her 100th of her career. She is also three blocks away from reaching 150 career points and one stone's throw away from reaching 900 career points.
– Sydney Jackwin needs an ace in her playing career to reach 50. Two aces and Jackwin matched her previous single-season high for aces of 17, something she accomplished twice at LA Tech.
– Kynli Kirkendoll is just four blocks away from reaching 50 in her young UTC career.

ACTION PLAN 2024
A variety of marketing and fan promotions will be offered for the Chattanooga volleyball team this season, with several home games offering unique and entertaining styling and/or giveaways to fans in attendance. Tuesday night's marketing promotion against the Bulldogs will be a “Get'cha Head in the Game Night” inspired by High School Musical. This Friday's Southern Conference game against The Citadel will serve as the Mocs' annual “Dig Pink” game. A complete list and schedule of UTC volleyball marketing promotions this season can be found HERE.

FOLLOW CHATTANOOGA VOLLEYBALL

Follow @GoMocsVB on Twitter and @GoMocsVolleyball on Instagram for the latest Chattanooga volleyball information and news.

Buy officially licensed equipment from us Online shop. The Mocs can also be followed on their official website Facebook side or on Twitter. Click here to find out how you can join the UTC Mocs Club and support more than 300 student-athletes Here. Check out the mocs on the mic Podcast here.