Florida Gators
Tennessee
Florida Volleyball Takes Down Tennessee in Straight Sets, Tallies 13th Consecutive Victory
Sunday, November 2, 2014 | Volleyball
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- No. 8 Florida registered its second-best hitting efficiency of the season (.444) as the Gators swept Tennessee in straight sets Sunday at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville behind 14 kills from sophomore right side Alex Holston and 17 digs from senior libero Holly Pole in the back row to help set up UF's stellar offense.
For the third straight match, the Orange and Blue (18-3, 12-0 SEC) limited its opposition to a single-digit set, Sunday by taking the initial stanza over the Lady Vols 25-9. Florida went on to win the second (25-13) and third (25-17) frames at Tennessee (8-17, 1-10 SEC) for its 10th sweep in SEC play. UF extended a season-long win streak to 13 matches, while limiting the Lady Vols to a .128 clip and just 21 kills in the match. Florida has now won 18 straight sets dating back to Oct. 15.
Three Gator players hit above .500 in the match, including Holston (.520), freshman middle blocker Rhamat Alhassan (.530) and junior outside hitter éiva Recek, who hit a season-best .545. Three others registered a .300 hitting efficiency or better to aid UF's best offensive efficiency in conference play.
Tennessee's .128 hitting efficiency against Florida Sunday marked UF's 15th match this season holding its opponent under a .197 hitting efficiency, including 11 of 12 conference contests.
Florida returns home to Gainesville Nov. 7 & 12 for match-ups with Alabama and Auburn, respectively, in the O'Dome.
GETTING WISE
“Today we got better at staying focused throughout an entire match, no matter what the score was. The players did a really good job following the game plan late in the match, as well as they did early on -- starting with Holly's play in the back row this afternoon.”
BY THE NUMBERS
· 45: wins all-time for Florida against the Lady Vols, including 41 under head coach Mary Wise. The Gators are now 20-5 all-time in Knoxville and 35-1 in three-set matches against Tennessee
· 18: straight sets won for the Gators. The Orange and Blue have now won 18 straight sets dating back to Oct. 15 when Florida won the last three sets of a 3-1 win at South Carolina
· 17: digs for senior libero Holly Pole to lead all players on the floor Sunday afternoon, her second-most in SEC play
· 15: matches the Gators have forced their opponents to operate below a .197 hitting efficiency, including 11 of 12 SEC matches. Florida held Tennessee to a .128 clip Sunday, while registering a .444 hitting efficiency, its best in SEC play and second-best this season
· 14: Sophomore right side Alex Holston's second straight match with 12 or more kills and her second match leading UF with double-digit slams
· 13: straight wins for the Gators, extending UF's longest win streak of the season and the longest of any team in league play. Florida last strung together a 13-match win streak from 9/13/13-10/18/13
· 12: straight SEC wins to start conference play. Florida is the only undefeated team in SEC play. UF has 12 undefeated SEC seasons all-time in program history, with the last coming in 2010
· 10: SEC sweeps following the win against Mississippi State Sunday (Auburn, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Georgia, Texas A&M, Arkansas, Missouri, Mississippi State, Georgia, Tennessee). Florida has dropped just two sets in SEC play, both on the road -- one to LSU and one to South Carolina (both on the road)
· 9: points for the Lady Vols in the first set which the Gators won 25-9, marking the third consecutive match the Gators have held an opponent to single-digit points in a set (MSU 25-9 first set 10/26, UGA 25-8 second set 10/29)
· 6: kills for junior outside hitter éiva Recek, who registered a season-best .545 hitting efficiency to lead the Gators against the Lady Vols Sunday
· 5: blocks for freshman middle Rhamat Alhassan, who led Florida in roofs for the 20th time this season
· 5: service aces for the Gators in the first set. Florida finished the match with nine. Florida has had eight or more service aces its last three matches
UP NEXT
The Orange and Blue return to the friendly confines of the Stephen C. O'Connell Center for a two-match home stand when Florida hosts Alabama Nov. 7 at 7 p.m. before the Auburn Tigers visit Gainesville on Wed, Nov. 12, for the second match-up between the two teams this season. The Gators opened the SEC season on the road with Auburn on Sept. 26, a match the Gators swept 3-0 (25-14, 25-19, 25-19).
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