Volleyball Begins Spring Slate Saturday at Duke
Thursday, March 18, 2010 | Volleyball
The University of Florida volleyball team, fresh off its 18th NCAA Regional Semifinal appearance in the last 19 years and its 19th consecutive 25-win season, opens its 2010 spring schedule on Saturday when it travels to a tournament at Durham, N.C.
Florida will square off with Duke at 10:15 a.m. before facing North Carolina at 11:30 a.m. The Gators will take on Pittsburgh at 1:30 p.m. in the final match of the day. All contests will be played in Brodie Gym on the Duke University campus.
Florida is coming off a 25-6 record, including a 16-4 mark in Southeastern Conference play in 2009, in what was arguably the most competitive season in SEC volleyball history. The Gators finished the year ranked among the American Volleyball Coaches Association's top 15 for the 19th year in a row. There were a number of milestones last season, including head coach Mary Wise earning her 600th victory at the hem of the Gators. The 603 wins during her tenure, which began in 1991, are the most of any program in the nation during that time period.
All matches included, Florida finished the season ranked fifth in the nation with a .291 hitting efficiency during the 2009 campaign, which also led the SEC. Penn State was the national leader in hitting percentage at .381, followed by Texas (.338), Hawaii (.305) and Florida State (.300).
Duke finished the 2009 with a 27-6 overall record, including a 17-3 tally in Atlantic Coast Conference play. The Blue Devils advanced to the NCAA Tournament before falling in the first round to Tennessee in Knoxville.
North Carolina concluded the 2009 campaign with a 15-16 overall record, including an 11-9 mark in ACC competition.
Pittsburgh posted a 20-11 overall record in 2009, including a 12-2 mark in BIG EAST play. The Panthers' 12 conference victories set a school record in that category.
Complete results and a recap of Saturday's match will be available at 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.
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