Skip To Main Content
Skip To Main Content

Savannah State University Athletics

1
0
Savannah St. SSU 8-17,5-9 SIAC
3
Winner Kentucky St. KySt 24-10,16-2 SIAC
Savannah St. SSU
8-17,5-9 SIAC
0
Final
3
Kentucky St. KySt
24-10,16-2 SIAC
Winner
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 F
Savannah St. SSU 20 20 18 (0)
Kentucky St. KySt 25 25 25 (3)

Game Recap: Women's Volleyball |

Lady Tigers finish turbulent 2019 season strong

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Undercut from the beginning by tragedy and injury, the 2019 Savannah State volleyball team accomplished much more than anyone anticipated this season.
 
The Lady Tigers, in their first year of competition within the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC), earned six conference wins, enough to make the SIAC Championship as the No. 4 seed from the East Division.
 
After falling to defending champions Spring Hill in the opening game on Monday, they rallied to beat Central State 3-2 and make the semifinals. The Lady Tigers closed out the season with a 0-3 loss to Kentucky State on Tuesday afternoon.
 
They finish 9-18 overall this year, an improvement on last year's 3-21 record. Jeilynn Brown led the Lady Tigers in their final game with 12 kills. Imani Williamson, the team's offensive leader, had 11 kills and 8 digs in the loss.
 
Fired up and ready for a new season with a new coach—first year Interim Head Coach Roselidah Obunaga—the Lady Tigers faced tragedy before they could even get the first serve off.
 
The first game of the season was delayed due to Hurricane Dorian in early September. During the evacuation, junior hitter Karissa Tatum and senior libero Liz Ortiz were evacuating when the car they were in hydroplaned and crashed. Tatum later passed away at Memorial Hospital. Oritz was rendered ineligible to play for the season due to her injuries from the accident.
 
On Sept. 17, the team were finally able to open the regular season. They decided to honor Tatum by leaving her jersey on an empty seat throughout the season.
13157
 
In one of their final home games, the team along with Director of Athletics Opio Mashariki and Savannah State Interim President Kimberly Ballard-Washington presented a framed jersey to Tatum's parents and family in a pre-game ceremony, citing that "Tatum will always be a part of the Savannah State family."
 
"It was definitely the toughest mental season I've been through," said senior middle blocker Jamese Scott in an interview with WTOC. "The amount of adversity that this team has faced is honestly the worst-case-scenario type of deal. Losing my friend gave me a different purpose to play."
 
During the 2019 SIAC Championship, and throughout the season, Scott and teammates wrote "Do It For KG" on the inside of their sneakers in honor of their teammate.
 
"Not hearing her voice. Looking over to the sideline at my first game and she wasn't there was definitely, definitely tough, but it also was a fire in my belly to keep going," Scott, who was Tatum's roommate last year, said in the interview with WTOC.
 
13158

 
Despite the roadblocks and playing against teams with full rosters, the Lady Tigers made a statement on the court this season with big conference wins and late game rallies, improving on the three-win record from last season.
 
In addition to their strong tournament run, Savannah State earned a number of conference accolades this year.
 
Destini Williams was named SIAC Newcomer of the Week on Sept. 24. Valeria Aldarondo was named SIAC Setter of the Week twice on Oct. 7 and Oct. 21. Aldarondo was also named to the SIAC All-Conference Second Team for her efforts in the setter position this year.
 
Aldarondo concludes her sophomore season with 678 assists and a team-high 206 digs. Williamson led the Lady Tigers this season with 233 kills on 529 attacks, and 146 digs. Scott finishes her collegiate volleyball career atop the team stats with 139 kills and a team-high 66 blocks. Brown concludes her sophomore season with 232 kills and 145 digs.
 
Print Friendly Version