No. 17 Gators Return Home to O'Dome for Final Homestand
Friday, November 18, 2011 | Volleyball
The No. 17 Florida volleyball team returns home for its final three matches of the regular season. The Gators renew their oldest rivalry with the Georgia Bulldogs at 7 p.m. on Friday, November 18th with Cory Stephens on the call on Country 103.7 The Gator. Friday's match has been designated as a “Salute Those Who Serve” match. All members of the military receive a $2 ticket when they show their military ID at the ticket office on Friday. The contest between the Gators and the Bulldogs will air live with longtime play by play announcer Tom Collett and former Gator All-SEC setter Missy Whittemore calling the action.
On Sunday, the Orange and Blue face the Auburn Tigers at 1:30 p.m., broadcasting live on Sun Sports. Larry Vettel and Whittemore will broadcast the action while Gator fans can tune in to Country 103.7 The Gator with Collett and Stephens on the call. Sunday's match is Florida's Senior Day and fans are encouraged to attend the pre-match ceremony honoring the five Gator seniors.
Florida is coming off two straight comeback wins of SEC opponents on their Senior Nights, as the Gators defeated both LSU and Arkansas on the road. Sophomore middle blocker Chloe Mann (Gainesville, Fla.) recorded 37 kills in the two matches, including going 18-for-20 with no errors on Friday night for the second-best hitting percentage (.900) in NCAA history on 20-or-more swings. She followed that performance with a career-high 19 kills on Sunday, adding five block assists in both matches. For her efforts last weekend, Mann was honored as the SEC Offensive Player of the Week.
Senior outside hitter Kristy Jaeckel (Littleton, Colo.) also had 19 kills on Sunday, adding 10 digs for her eighth double-double of the season. The 3-2 triumph over Arkansas marked the first time since September 6, 2008 that Florida rallied from an 0-2 deficit to defeat an opponent and the first time since September 21, 2001 that the feat was accomplished on the road.
The Gators currently lead the SEC and are second in the NCAA in hitting percentage (.301), while ranking tops in the SEC in opponent hitting percentage (.164) and service aces (1.65/set) as well, which is 16th in the NCAA.
Jaeckel ranks in the SEC's top-10 in three statistical categories, including kills (3.35/set - 8th), points (4.12/set - 6th) and service aces (.40/set – 1st). Lowe's Senior CLASS Award finalist Kelly Murphy (Wilmington, Ill.) ranks in the top-10 in the SEC in service aces (.37/set - 3rd), hitting percentage (.312 - 8th) and assists (5.94/set - 10th). Redshirt freshman libero Taylor Unroe (Muncie, Ind.) is seventh in the conference in digs (3.63/set). Junior right-side hitter Tangerine Wiggs (Seattle, Wash.) is third in hitting percentage with a .328 hitting clip and junior middle blocker Betsy Smith (Atlanta, Ga.) is fifth in the league in blocks with 1.01/set.
The Georgia Bulldogs (11-16, 7-10 SEC) earned a four-set victory over Mississippi State. The match was the final home match of the 2011 season for the Bulldogs. Senior setter Kathleen Gates dished out 44 assists in the match raising her career assist total to 4,598, moving her up to third all-time in the UGA record books.
The Auburn Tigers (10-17, 4-13 SEC) dropped their third straight match Sunday, falling at home to Mississippi State 3-0 (21-25, 16-25, 20-25). Senior Kelly Fidero led all hitters with 14
kills in the match, her 19th double-digit effort in 27 matches in 2011. She now has 962 kills for her career, 38 shy of becoming the 13th member of Auburn's 1,000-Kill Club; she will need to average 12.67 kills/match over the Tigers' final three contests to reach the mark. Fidero leads the Tigers with 318 kills (3.24/set) for the year; Sarah Bullock is next with 232 kills (2.64/set).
The Gators hold a 52-9 record all-time against the Bulldogs, including a 49-1 mark under Florida head coach Mary Wise. Florida leads the all-time series over Auburn, 37-1, with Wise a perfect 33-0 against the Tigers. The Gators lead both opponents in every statistical category except for digs, where all three teams sit in the bottom third of the conference.
