Volleyball Opens Second Half of SEC Schedule Friday vs. Arkansas
Thursday, October 22, 2009 | Volleyball
| GATOR MATCH-DAY VS. ARKANSAS | |
| FLORIDA | ARKANSAS |
The No. 10/11 University of Florida volleyball team begins the second half of the challenging Southeastern Conference slate on Friday when it plays host to Arkansas. Opening serve in the Stephen C. O'Connell Center is slated for 7 p.m. ET and the match will be carried live on Sun Sports with Larry Vettel and Missy Whittemore and on WRUF-AM 850 with Tom Collett.
The Gators (14-3, 8-2 SEC) are coming off of a four-match league road trip and consecutive SEC sweeps against Auburn and Georgia this past weekend. Florida was impressive in its blocking this weekend, out-blocking its opponents 21.5-6.
Florida is currently one match back of Kentucky and LSU for the SEC lead, following a Tennessee win against the Wildcats on Wednesday evening in Lexington, Ky. The Gators and the Lady Vols are tied for second in the SEC with two losses apiece.
“I think the best part for this team is to get back home after five of the first eight weekends on the road,” Florida head coach Mary Wise said. “It's an opportunity to play back in the O'Connell Center to start the second half of the SEC. All we can do is to take care of the things we can take care of and that is the goal of the team. I think playing in the O'Connell Center really energizes the team.”
Sophomore right-side/setter Kelly Murphy (Wilmington, Ill.) is the reigning SEC Offensive Player of the Week after a remarkable performance in the Gators' last two matches, finishing the weekend with 26 total kills for an average of 4.33 kills per set on a stellar .600 hitting efficiency. She also averaged 5.83 assists per set, 3.17 digs per set and 1.00 blocks per set. She currently is the only player in the SEC to rank in the league's top 10 in both hitting percentage and assists per set.
On the season, the Gators are led offensively by sophomore outside hitter Colleen Ward (Naperville, Ill.), who ranks eighth in the SEC with 3.27 kills per set. Sophomore outside hitter Kristy Jaeckel (Littleton, Colo.) is 10th in the SEC with 3.11 kills per set, while Murphy follows with 3.08 put-downs per set.
Senior libero Elyse Cusack (Melrose, Fla.) looks to become the first player in school history and just the third in league history to reach the 1,900-dig plateau for her career. The school's all-time career digs leader, she currently has 1,895 digs in her decorated collegiate career. This season, Cusack ranks tops on the squad and third on the team with 4.21 digs per set.
Florida and Arkansas meet for the 30th time in the history of the two programs. The Gators lead the all-time series 27-2 after first meeting the Razorbacks during the 1994 season when UA added volleyball to its athletics program. From 1995-99, Florida and Arkansas met annually to decide the SEC Tournament title.
The Razorbacks enter Friday's match with a 10-11 overall record, including a 4-6 mark in SEC play. They currently are in third place in the SEC Western Division. Last weekend, Arkansas was swept by both Ole Miss and No. 20 LSU in a pair of matches.
Arkansas is led by freshman outside hitter Jasmine Norton, a three-time SEC Freshman of the Week selection. Norton has posted a double-digit kill effort in six consecutive matches and currently ranks fourth in the SEC in kills per set with 3.73. Fellow freshman Amanda Anderson is ninth in the league in hitting percentage with a .320 clip and also averages a squad-best 0.92 blocks per set. Sophomore libero Phoebe Bautista ranks sixth in the conference with 4.05 digs per set.
Complete results and a recap of Friday's match will be available on www.GatorZone.com/volleyball.
For all of the latest information on Florida Volleyball, please log on to www.GatorZone.com/volleyball. Follow the Gators on Twitter at www.twitter.com/GatorZoneVB and Coach Mary Wise on Twitter at www.twitter.com/GatorMary.
The University of Florida is home to the 2009 NCAA Volleyball Regional. For ticket information, log on to www.GatorZone.com/tickets.
QUICK NOTES
- Florida and Arkansas meet for the 30th time in the history of the two programs. The Gators lead the all-time series 27-2 after first meeting the Razorbacks during the 1994 season when UA added volleyball to its athletics program.
- Florida's 592 wins since 1991 are the most of any team in the nation during that time period.
- Sophomore right-side/setter Kelly Murphy on Monday was named the SEC Offensive Player of the Week, earning that honor for the second time in her career.
- Murphy is tied for the national lead in triple-doubles with five this season and has a school-record-setting 11 triple-dips for her career.
- Senior libero Elyse Cusack is the school's all-time career digs leader with 1,895 career scoops. She looks to become the first player in school history and just the third in SEC history to eclipse the 1,900-dig plateau.
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