Girl Vols’ tourney run ends in Candy 16 vs. Hokies

SEATTLE, Wash. — The fourth-seeded Girl Vols pulled inside one late within the second half after trailing by as many as 18 within the third quarter, however their comeback got here up brief as No. 1 seed Virginia Tech pulled off a 73-64 victory on Saturday within the Seattle 3 Regional Semifinal recreation at Local weather Pledge Enviornment.

The Girl Vols completed the season with 25 wins, reaching that milestone for the thirty eighth time in program historical past. They superior to the NCAA Candy 16 in back-to-back seasons for the primary time since 2015 and 2016.

Three gamers had been in double figures for Tennessee (25-12), with senior Jordan Horston main the best way with 17 factors. Senior Rickea Jackson was shut behind with 15 factors and a team-high eight rebounds, whereas graduate Jordan Walker added 12 factors.

For Virginia Tech (30-4), Georgia Amoore turned in a game-high 29 factors. Kayana Traylor and Elizabeth Kitley additionally had robust outings with 14 and 12, respectively.

The Hokies jumped out to a 9-0 lead early as UT struggled to attach from the ground till Jordan Walker bought UT on the board with a jumper slightly below three minutes into play. Jillian Hollingshead adopted it up a minute and a half later to drag the Girl Vols inside 5, however VT went on a 7-2 run to steer 16-6 by the three:35 mark. Hollingshead answered with a layup, and Jackson sank a 3 to drag Tennessee again inside 5 two minutes later. Kitley hit a layup, however Jackson transformed on a three-point play within the closing seconds to ship the sport into the second interval with Virginia Tech on high 18-13.

The groups traded buckets via the primary two minutes of the second body, with UT creeping inside 4 off a 3 by Horston, however Amoore responded with a trey on the quick break to ship the Hokies forward 25-18 with 7:13 to go within the half. The Girl Vols reduce the deficit down to 5 twice earlier than a 3 by Traylor set off an 8-0 run spanning the ultimate three minutes of the half to present VT a 35-22 benefit on the break.

The Hokies got here out sizzling within the second half, scoring on their first two possessions to steer 40-22 by the 8:56 mark. Tess Darby answered with a jumper, and Walker added three factors to drag UT again inside 13 three minutes later. Kitley hit a brief jumper earlier than each groups remained scoreless for 2 minutes. Horston ended the drought with a mid-range bucket, and the Girl Vols remained inside 13 till a 3-pointer by D’Asia Gregg put the Hokies out entrance 47-31 with 1:44 left within the third. Each groups hit a pair of free throws earlier than UT closed out the interval with seven unanswered factors to drag inside single digits at 49-40.

Horston hit the second of a pair of free throws to begin the fourth, trimming the deficit right down to eight earlier than Traylor buried a jumper on the opposite finish on the 8:48 mark. Tennessee responded with back-to-back buckets by Horston and Jackson, adopted by a steal and rating from Walker to nudge the Huge Orange inside 4 at 51-47 with 7:42 to play. Walker struck once more following a VT timeout, narrowing the hole to 2. Kitley hit a jumper on the opposite finish, however a 3-pointer by Jasmine Powell moved UT inside one with 6:10 to go. A 3-point play by Traylor kicked off an 8-0 Hokie run that propelled VT forward, 61-52, two and a half minutes later, and regardless of a suffocating full-court press within the closing minutes, the Girl Vols by no means recovered, falling 73-64.

Dime-Dropping Century Trio: Three Tennessee gamers completed the season with 100+ assists in 2022-23, marking the primary time since 2005-06 that the Girl Vols featured that productiveness. It was solely the sixth group in program historical past to perform that feat. Jordan Walker completed with 119, Jordan Horston tallied 117 and Jasmine Powell ended with 116.

Walker Wraps Up Three-Yr UT Profession In Double Figures: Graduate guard Jordan Walker concluded her taking part in profession at Tennessee, contributing 12 factors, six rebounds, three steals and an help vs. Virginia Tech. She tallied 604 factors, 398 rebounds, 393 assists and 109 steals whereas beginning 77 of 96 contests for the Huge Orange. For her whole profession, together with two seasons at Western Michigan, Walker completed with 1,359 factors, 714 rebounds, 433 assists and 227 steals whereas beginning 131 of 160 video games.