Box Score | Highlights | Recap

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The 13th-ranked Florida Gators closed out their regular season with a sweep on Friday evening against the South Carolina Gamecocks. Before the match, the Gators honored their two seniors in Allie Monserez and Taelor Kellum.

Florida finishes the regular season with an overall record of 24-6 and 15-3 in the SEC.

This match marked the fourth in seven days for the Gators - the team swept both LSU and Georgia during the stretch, but fell to Tennessee on Wednesday.

UF took the first set, 25-21, and followed with a 25-22 victory in the second set. The Gators then clinched the match with a 25-16 win in the final set.

The Gators were led offensively by Paige Hammons, who registered 13 kills during the match. Rachael Kramer, Taelor Kellum and Holly Carlton all pitched in eight kills of their own.

Carlton (.467), Kellum (.467) and Kramer (.400) all hit over .400 in the match.

Allie Monserez led the Gators in setting for the 28th match this season, dishing out 26 assists on the evening. Marlie Monserez added 13 of her own as well.

Allie Gregory controlled the backcourt defense for Florida, posting 17 digs during the match. Gregory has led the Gators in digs 27 times this season.

As a team, Florida collect 11 blocks, including a team-best from five from Rachael Kramer. Paige Hammons and Mia Sokolowski each added four blocks as well.  

The Gators have now won at least 24 matches in every season under Mary Wise's tutelage (28 consecutive seasons).

The NCAA Tournament selection show airs Sunday evening at 8:30 p.m. on ESPNU. The Gators await to find out their seeding and whether or not the team will host the first and second rounds.

How it Happened

• The Gators hopped out to an early 11-5 lead in the first set and continued to roll, getting up as much as 19-9 in the frame after a Taelor Kellum kill. The Gamecocks went on a 4-0 run to get within six at 20-13, then went on another run to get within three at 23-20, but a service error and a Holly Carlton kill secured the first set for Florida.
  • Florida hit .300 as a squad, racking up 14 kills. Rachael Kramer led the way with four, while Paige Hammons and Holly Carlton both posted three in the frame.
• The second set was back-and-forth between the two squads, but Florida took the 15-12 lead into the media timeout. UF continued to hold the advantage and was up 23-20 late, but the Gamecocks were able to chip away to bring it to within one at 23-22. Mia Sokolowski and Paige Hammons each recorded a kill from their respective pins to close out the set.
  • The Gators hit .350 in the second set, recording 18 kills. Paige Hammons posted four, while Rachel Kramer, Taelor Kellum, Thayer Hall and Holly Carlton each pitched in three apiece.
• After trailing 5-4 in the third set, the Gators went on a 7-1 run behind the serves of Paula Cerame and Allie Gregory. From that point on, the Gators controlled all of the momentum, outscoring South Carolina 14-10.
  • Paige Hammons led the way with six kills in the final frame, while the team hit .344 as a whole in the set.

Notables

• Paige Hammons led the team in kills for the sixth time this season
• Allie Monserez led the team in assists for the 28th time this season
• Allie Gregory led the team in digs for the 27th time this season
• Rachael Kramer led the team in blocks for the 18th time this season
• After being out for seven matches due to an injury, Thayer Hall returned to the Gators starting lineup and recorded six kills and two digs
• The Gators improve to 57-7 all-time against the Gamecocks
• Florida moves to 43-2 in three-set matches against South Carolina
• UF is now 29-1 against the Gamecocks in Gainesville
• The Gators finish the regular season with a 13-2 record in Exactech Arena
• Florida finishes the SEC with a 15-3 record this season
• The Gators move to 11-2 in three-set matches this season
• Florida has now won at least 24 matches in every season under Mary Wise's tutelage (28 consecutive seasons)  

Thoughts from Coach Wise

• "In the last match of the regular season – before we move into the third part of the season – there were a lot of really good things to build on."

Players' Corner
Senior MB Taelor Kellum on playing her last regular season match at home

• "I am feeling so great. I could not have asked for a better senior night. As far as the team, we've been saying that we want to flip the story. We wanted to come out a different group and that is what we showed tonight."
• "It helps to have so many others behind me, along with Allie. It made it such a special senior night. I tried not to think about it as my last home game, but I knew it wasn't my last match with the team."

Senior Allie Monserez on playing her last regular season match at home

• "It was definitely an emotional night. We did a really good job of taking care of our emotions in the beginning. We started off strong and played together; there were some moments of up and down throughout the match, but in the third set we really came together. We put together a lot of things we had been working on, even things we just implemented yesterday in practice."
• "It was such an amazing experience playing in the O'Dome for these past three seasons – it was awesome to go out like this."

Up Next

• The NCAA Selection Show airs on Sunday night at 8:30 p.m. on ESPNU
• The Gators await to find out their seeding and whether or not they earn hosting rights for the first & second rounds
• Currently, Florida sits 13th in the AVCA poll and 20th in the NCAA RPI