Lilley's All-Around Effort Lifts Cats on Wednesday
Prior to the 2019 season, Kentucky setter Madison Lilley was named to the preseason All-SEC team, the only setter to earn the honor. But as the early part of this season unfolded, it was other setters within the conference who were given setter of the week honors by the SEC ahead of Lilley.
In fact, it wasn’t until Oct. 21, eight weeks into the season, that Lilley earned her first SEC Setter of the Week honor for this season (Lilley was also the SEC Player of the Week during that seven-day span). Last week, she earned her second SEC setter of the week honor after her 63-set assist performance in UK’s five-set win over Florida.
Lilley followed that outstanding performance with another stellar effort on Wednesday night as the Cats swept Missouri 25-18, 25-18, 25-21 at Memorial Coliseum. Displaying a huge all-around effort, Lilley had 37 assists, six digs, six total blocks and three service aces. She was also serving in the first set as Kentucky went on a 7-0 run to turn an early deficit into a lead that the Cats would not relinquish.
Ever the team player, Lilley is much more concerned about her team than individual honors.
“It’s never about the awards,” Lilley said. “We’re winning. We all do everything for each other. At the end, everything shines through whether it’s an award, a win and we all put a lot of faith into that.”
Kentucky head coach Craig Skinner knows how important it is to have a player like Lilley who can do so many things for her team.
“Madison’s ability to do five or six things on the court separates her from other setters,” Skinner said. “We don’t have to worry as much about blocking matchups with her because she’s obviously a pretty effective blocker.”
Lilley knows that her entire skillset has improved since her arrival in Lexington, but she’s quick to point out a particular area where she’s proud to have gotten better.
“I think definitely blocking, freshman to junior Madison blocking is just a completely different thing,” Lilley said. “Big shout out to (associate head coach) Anders (Nelson). We work so hard in practice. He’s been really patient. Blocking is one of the hardest skills. I’ve always wanted to be one of the best blocking setters in the league.”
With two matches to play in the regular season, Lilley has 3,740 career assists, which is fifth in UK history. It’s the second-highest career total in the 25-point rally scoring era at Kentucky, a record that Lilley should break before the end of the regular season. Morgan Bergren had 3,814 assists during her UK career to currently rank first in that category.
This season, Lilley is currently third in the SEC and 18th in the country in set assists. Despite those numbers and the accolades that should go with them, Lilley just keeps her head down and continues to work hard to improve.
“We’re really good at working without the applause,” Lilley said of herself and her teammates. “I think that’s something that all high-level athletes need to be able to do.”
It’s something that Lilley has done this season, as she quietly tries to lead her team to its third straight SEC title.
