Nov. 16, 2001

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - The University of Kentucky volleyball team ended Southeastern Conference play on Friday, Nov. 16, with a 3-0 loss to Arkansas in the opening round of the 2001 SEC Tournament in Knoxville, Tenn.

The Cats hit .071 on the day to Western Division Champion Arkansas' .248. Sissy Canfield had a spectacular first game, knocking down seven kills in nine attempts for a .778 hitting percentage, en route to her team-high .333 percentage on the match. Eftila Tanellari's 12 kills led the way for the Lady Razorbacks.

Kentucky (13-13, 6-8 SEC) opened the first game with strong play, building to a 7-3 lead and forcing an Arkansas timeout. The Hogs fought back, however, cutting UK's lead to two at 15-13 and forced the Wildcats to burn a timeout. Kentucky was able to take another five-point lead, but UA found its rhythm and tied the game at 26. After another tie at 28, Arkansas ripped two straight points to steal the game from the Wildcats, 30-28.

The Lady Razorbacks (19-10, 12-3 SEC) were on their mark to start the second game, pulling out to a 15-7 lead. Kentucky was able to cut the lead to five after a UA service error, but the Hogs grabbed the next three points to put UK down 22-14 and force a Cat timeout. The Razorbacks dominated the remainder of the game, taking a 2-0 advantage in the match with the 30-19 win.

The third game remained close early on before the Hogs went on a 6-0 run to take the 17-9 lead. A service error gave Kentucky the side-out, but UA would get the ball right back on a kill. The Hogs were determined and used powerful play down the stretch to hold of a late UK rally and take the game 30-19.

It was the first postseason appearance for the Wildcats since 1999 after a disappointing 3-11 SEC season in 2000.

The Cats close out the season next week with a two-game road stand beginning with a rescheduled match with intrastate rival Louisville on Wednesday, Nov. 21 at 7 p.m. Kentucky then heads south to Clemson, S.C., for a match with the Tigers on Friday, Nov. 23 at 7 p.m.