The Lady Vol Report

Lady Vols Basketball Finish West Coast Road Trip with Top Ten Matchup vs #4 Stanford

The Lady Vols Basketball team won the first of two games on their trip to the west coast over UCLA 85-64. Five different Lady Vols scored double digits:  Simmons (18), Johnson (17), Spani (14), Baugh (14) and Stricklen (11). Tennessee lept out to an early lead, hitting 76 % of their shots in the first half.

The second game of the road trip is tonight against #4 Stanford. Playing Stanford has been a yearly tradition for the Lady Vols since 1988. The Cardinal are 7-1, with the only loss being a 68-58 loss to then #4 UCONN on the road. Last season, the Lady Vols got a big win over the #2 ranked Cardinal by 10 in Thompson-Boling Arena.

“I think it speaks to the bonds of respect and friendship that exists between Coach VanDerveer and Pat,” Tennessee assistant coach Dean Lockwood said. “I think it’s a matter of them saying, ‘This is what we are going to do. These two programs should play each other.’ It’s a natural fit.” Stanford holds a 67-game home win streak but have lost 22 of the 28 matchups to the Lady Vols. “This is a barometer game for us,” Stanford Coach Tara VanDerveer said. “Every year they are one of the toughest games on our schedule.” Vanderveer describes her relationship with Coach Summit as that of a “friend and mentor.” Both are Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame inductees.

Lady Vols Soccer Coach Angela Kelly to Take Job at Texas 

Angela Kelly spent 16 years on Rocky Top, 12 of those as Head Coach. Kelly posted a 160-84-20 (.664) during her tenure at Tennessee and guided the Vols to nine NCAA Tournament Appearances, three SEC regular season championships, four SEC Tournament championships, and received three SEC Coach of the Year awards. Kelly’s final season saw a return to form for the Lady Vols after two rough campaigns in 2009 and 2010. The 2011 squad went 15-7 (7-4 SEC) and earned a top 16 seed in the tournament but were ousted in the first round by Ohio State. The search for Kelly’s replacement will begin immediately.

Diver Tori Lamp Qualifies for Olympic Trials 

Lady Vols Diver Tori Lamp finished 5th in the  10-Meter diving platform finals at the USA Diving Winter Nationals. The qualifiers will be held in June in Seattle. Lamp follows in her father’s footsteps in competing in the trials, her father competed in the Track & Field qualifiers as well.