Florida Volleyball Notebook: Sept. 7, 2010
Wednesday, September 8, 2010 | Volleyball
When college volleyball fans think of Florida's right-side attack, perhaps the first name that comes to mind is junior Kelly Murphy (Wilmington, Ill.). But in the 2010 season, add in sophomore transfer Tangerine Wiggs (Seattle, Wash.) and the No. 4 Gators have a powerful 1-2 punch on the right side.
Murphy a two-time AVCA All-American has proven herself as equally effective as both a hitter and a setter as part of a 6-2 offensive scheme. Her left-handed attacks out of a good set have become nearly unstoppable. Murphy, who has already been named the Sports Imports/AVCA Division I National Player of the Week this season, leads the Gators with 2.58 kills per set on .356 hitting with 5.63 assists per set, 1.84 digs per set and 0.53 blocks per set.
Wiggs, who joined the Gators as a transfer from Washington State prior to the start of this season, has proven her effectiveness as a defensive player, averaging 1.16 blocks per set. She also ranks fourth on the team with 1.68 kills per set.
“On the right side, we have Kelly Murphy and Tangerine Wiggs, who are two very different-type players,” Florida head coach Mary Wise said. “What we have in Kelly is a great arm as a left-handed player with terrific court vision. In Tangerine, who is longer, has really given us a bonus with her offense. We knew she could block balls for us and her numbers indicate she can block balls against some really good teams. She's given us offense and defense on the right side.”
Having two talented right-sides has given Florida a new look this season, including allowing the Gators to out-block their opponents 55.5-38.0 already this year. It's part of a balanced lineup that features six players averaging better than 1.5 kills per set and five players averaging better than 0.5 blocks per set.
Together, Murphy and Wiggs have combined for 33 blocks and 81 kills already this season.
Murphy, Wiggs and the Gators return to action on Friday when Florida plays host to No. 2 Penn State as part of the Nike Volleyball Big Four Classic. Opening serve is slated for 7:30 p.m. ET and the match will be carried live on ROCK 104 (103.7 FM in Gainesville) with Cory Stephens. The match will air tape-delay at 10:30 p.m. ET on Sun Sports with Tom Collett and Missy Whittemore.
NIKE VOLLEYBALL BIG FOUR CLASSIC SCHEDULE
Friday, September 10, 2010
5:30 p.m. ET – Stanford vs. Texas
7:30 p.m. ET – Penn State vs. Florida (Sun Sports Tape-Delay/Live on GatorVision)
Saturday, September 11, 2010
4:30 p.m. ET – Florida vs. Stanford/Texas (Sun Sports/GatorVision)
6:30 p.m. ET – Penn State vs. Stanford/Texas
For all of the latest information on Florida volleyball, please log on to www.GatorZone.com/volleyball. Follow Florida Volleyball on Twitter at www.twitter.com/GatorZoneVB and Coach Mary Wise on Twitter at www.twitter.com/GatorMary.
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