Gators Surge Past Tigers in Four Sets

Saturday, October 8

Gainesville, Fla.

6 PM

Florida Gators

12-3, 4-1SEC

LSU

10-7, 4-3SEC

LSU

Florida

Gators Surge Past Tigers in Four Sets

Saturday, October 8, 2022 | Volleyball

Box Score

Three Florida players hit double-digit kills in the match

By: Katie Callahan

Box Score

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The 15th-ranked Florida volleyball team topped the LSU Tigers in four sets to open up the series on Saturday night in Exactech Arena.

The Gators improve to 12-3 overall and 4-1 in league play, while LSU drops to 10-7 on the year and 4-3 in the SEC.

Florida opened the match with a 25-18 victory in the first frame, but LSU followed with a 25-23 win in the second set. UF grabbed the third set 25-18 and closed out the match with a 27-25 victory in the fourth to earn its ninth win in the last 10 matches.

The Gators were led on the offensive front by Merritt Beason and Marina Markova, who each posted 15 kills in the match. Sofia Victoria followed with 13 kills of her own, while Bre Kelley put together an eight-kill performance in the four-setter.

As a team, the Gators tallied 15.5 blocks at the net while holding LSU to a .124 hitting efficiency. Kelley and Gabrielle Essix led the presence at the net, each finishing with seven blocks. Beason and Markova each registered five blocks as well, while Victoria added two.

Alexis Stucky dished out 44 assists en route leading the squad to a .279 clip on the night.

Elli McKissock paced the backcourt defense for the Gators, finishing the match with 21 digs. Beason added 11 of her own for her first double-double of the season, while Emily Canaan pitched in eight and Markova added seven.

Behind the service line, Canaan posted a team-high three aces, while Kelley added a career-high two.

The Gators return to action on Sunday to close out the series against the Tigers, with first serve slated for 3 p.m. The match will be aired on SEC Network + and can be heard on the airways of ESPN Gainesville 98.1 FM/850 AM.

Records
No. 15 Florida (12-3, 4-1 SEC)
LSU (10-7, 4-3 SEC)

How It Happened

With the Gators leading the opening frame 7-4, the Tigers used a 4-0 run to take the 8-7 advantage. That started the back-and-forth battle between the teams, with neither team holding more than a one-point lead until a McKissock service run put Florida ahead 15-11 going into the media timeout. Out of the break, the Gators continued their run, pulling ahead 19-12 to force a timeout by the Tigers. LSU cut the deficit to just five at 23-18, but Florida closed out with two-straight points to clinch the first set.
- Florida was led by four kills apiece from Beason and Victoria and the Gators held the Tigers to a .000 clip in the frame.
The Gators kept up the momentum from the first set to start the second, jumping out to the early 6-2 lead to force an LSU timeout. The Tigers battled back to tie the set at 8-all and then the squads continued to trade points until another McKissock service run put Florida ahead 15-11. LSU pulled back to within two at 17-15, but a Kelley service run gave UF the 20-15 lead. The responded with an 8-2 run, taking the 23-22 advantage and forcing the final Florida timeout of the frame. LSU held on to even the match at 1-1 with a 25-23 victory in the second.
- Florida hit .256 in the frame, led by five kills from Victoria and four kills from Beason.
The third set was a frame of runs for each team throughout. UF took the early 12-6 lead in the third set, thanks in part to a 4-0 run behind the serves of Kelley. The Tigers answered with a 5-0 run to cut Florida's lead to just one, forcing a timeout by the Gators. Out of the break, Florida went on a 3-0 run of its own behind the serves of Canaan to take the 16-12 lead. LSU answered with a 5-1 spurt to tie the frame at 17-all and force the second Florida timeout of the set. The Gators closed out the set on an 8-2 run to win 25-19 and pull ahead 2-1 in the match.
- Florida held the Tigers to a -.022 clip in the set and tallied seven blocks, led by four from Essix. Kelley and Markova each added three apiece in the set.
The Gators jumped out to the 7-4 lead early in the fourth frame and continued to build upon that momentum, grabbing as large as a six-point lead at the 18-12 mark. That advantage forced the Tigers to use their first timeout of the set and out of that timeout, LSU cut the deficit to just three to this time causing Florida to take a timeout at the 18-15 mark. The Tigers battled out of the break to tie the set at 23-all, but the Gators were able to come out with the extra-points victory, winning 27-25.
- Florida hit a stellar .531 in the final set, led by eight kills from Markova. Victoria added four, while Beason and Kelley each pitched in three to secure the win.

Notables

With her 21 digs on Saturday evening, Elli McKissock eclipsed the 1,000-dig mark. She now sits at 1,012, moving into 15th place in Florida's record books
Merritt Beason recorded her first double-double of the season, finishing with15 kills and 11 digs
The Gators are now 50-14 against the Tigers, including a 47-6 record under Mary Wise
Florida is now 17-7 against LSU in four-set matches
The Gators improve to 24-5 against the Tigers in Gainesville, Fla.
UF moves to 5-1 in four-set matches during the 2022 campaign

Thoughts from Coach Wise

"It was a great SEC battle in front of a terrific crowd. So appreciative of the crowd that came out tonight and we know we have a huge test in front of us tomorrow."

Up Next

The Gators return to action on Sunday to close out the series against the Tigers
First serve is slated for 3 p.m. on SEC Network +
The match can also be heard on the airways of ESPN Gainesville 98.1FM/850 AM

No. 15 Florida vs. LSU Broadcast Information
Date & Time: Oct. 9 | 3 p.m.
Live Stream: SEC Network +
Live Stats: Statbroadcast
Radio: ESPN Gainesville 98.1 FM/850 AM

Series Information – No. 15 Florida vs. LSU
Tigers | 2022 season synopsis: 10-7, 4-3 SEC

This is the 65th meeting between the Gators and the Tigers
Florida leads 50-14 (47-6 under Mary Wise)
3-set: 29-7 | 4-set: 17-7 | 5-set: 4-0
Home: 24-5 | Away: 21-7 | Neutral: 3-2
Last Time Out: Oct. 8, 2022 | Gainesville, Fla. | W, 3-1 (25-18, 23-25, 25-19, 27-25)

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