Gators Volleyball Bounces Back With 3-1 Victory Over Alabama
After a three-game skid, No. 19 Florida got back into the win column with a four-set victory (25-16, 23-25, 25-21, 25-21) over the Alabama Crimson Tide.
The win is the first of SEC play for Florida under the leadership of Ryan Theis following a Friday night loss to Mississippi State.
Florida (6-5, 1-1 SEC) dominated Alabama offensively, outpacing the Crimson Tide 68-39 in kills. Milica Vidacic and Jordyn Byrd added career-high outputs in the win, notching 18 kills and 24 kills respectively. The 20-plus kill day is the third from Byrd, who had her NCAA debut just over a month ago.
“She’s in her 11th collegiate match and she can keep building on that confidence,” Theis said about Byrd’s offensive power. “We’re all for it.”
Florida also did an impressive job of limiting chances for Alabama (8-3, 0-2 in SEC), boasting a sideout percentage of 57.1% in the match. The Crimson Tide entered the match leading the SEC and ranking sixth nationally in aces per set. Alabama kills leader Victoria Barrett was denied time after time, making offensive consistency a key weakness for the Crimson Tide. The 2024 CAA Player of the Year at Towson was held to only six kills, her lowest total of the season.
On the offensive side, the Theis-led Gators made drastic improvements from the SEC opener. Florida lowered its attacking errors from 30 on Friday night to 23. As a result, the Gators increased their hitting percentage, rising from .237 against Mississippi State to .294.
Florida broke set one open, vaulting ahead with a 7-1 scoring run to create an 20-12 lead. It wasn’t long after when a Vidacic kill clinched the set in Florida’s favor. The Gators hit with an impressive .407 mark in the set, all while containing Alabama to an .038 hitting percentage.
Alabama showed a new focus in set two, taking an early 13-11 lead while eliminating mistakes. Florida recovered briefly to make it 19-18 before the Crimson Tide rolled to a 25-23 set two win. Alabama touted no service errors in the set while capitalizing on the three free points given by Florida.
With an opportunity for Alabama to charge ahead, Florida slammed the door. The offensive firepower was brought to a new level by Florida in set three, with Vidacic reaching her career high in kills just halfway through set three. After an Alabama 19-17 lead and a well timed Theis timeout, the Gators turned things around. Florida stormed ahead to a 23-21 lead before Vidacic closed out the set with a pair of kills.
Nearing the end of set four, Byrd continued to make her mark. The Texas transfer added six kills amidst a fourth set comeback, proving crucial to the eventual victory. An Emily Canaan ace secured the set and match for Florida, giving the Gators their first conference win of the season.
Once again with a winning record and a conference win under its belt, Florida looks ahead.
The Gators will get a few days of rest before the finale of the homestand Friday against Auburn at 7 p.m. The match is the Gators’ annual “Pack The Dome” match, which set the second-highest attendance of 9,255 in program history last year.
Theis noted how the crowd could be a big momentum boost for Florida.
“Come out and support these guys,” he said. “They’re a really young group, so the more energy they can get helping them from the audience, the better.”
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Category: Gator Sports, Gators Volleyball, NCAA, SEC
