Mississippi State hadn’t lost at home all season. Florida hadn’t won a conference title outright in 12 years. Friday night in Starkville, one of those streaks had to end.
Both did. No. 4 Florida volleyball (22-2, 13-1 SEC) beat Mississippi State (17-8, 7-7) in four sets (25-21, 25-19, 21-25, 25-13) at the Newell-Grissom Building, claiming its first outright SEC title since 2014 and securing the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament.
It is the Gators’ 26th SEC title, the most in the league, and Florida clinched a share of it Sunday with a 3-1 win over Georgia. Its most recent title, in 2022, was shared with Kentucky
The Bulldogs entered the matchup undefeated at home but could not keep their home winning streak alive against the Gators. Mississippi State ranked first in the SEC in digs per set, but Florida found a way past the Bulldogs’ defense and capitalized on its scoring opportunities.
The first set was a back-and-forth battle with three ties and one lead change. Florida struggled with unforced errors and serve-receive issues in the set, recording six attack errors and two service errors, and the Bulldogs held the advantage in service aces, three to Florida’s zero. Mississippi State fought back late to make it close, forcing Florida to call a timeout with a 22-20 lead. The Gators responded after the timeout with junior middle blocker Alec Rothe recording the kill to secure the set. Logan King and Rothe led the Gators with four kills each in the first set.
Florida came out strong in the second set, going on a 7-1 run early to set the tone and force Mississippi State to call a timeout at 8-3. The Gators kept the pressure on and took control of the match as the Bulldogs struggled with errors, forcing another timeout at 12-6. Florida’s defense controlled the net and limited Mississippi State’s offense. Senior middle blocker Brooklyn Briscoe closed out the set with a kill.
The Gators carried their momentum into the third set, opening with a 6-1 run to take an early lead. Mississippi State battled back to make it close and forced Florida to call a timeout with an 18-17 lead. The Bulldogs kept their momentum and took a three-point lead late in the set. Florida’s hitting percentage dropped to .184, its lowest of the match, and Mississippi State won the set 25-21.
Florida responded by opening the fourth set with a 7-0 run to take control early. The Gators held their lead throughout the set and closed out the match with a 25-13 set win.
Kamryn Chaney and Rothe were Florida’s two biggest offensive weapons, each recording 16 kills. Rothe came into the match ranked sixth nationally with a .431 hitting percentage and hit .609. The Gators outblocked the Bulldogs 14-8 and held them to a .095 hitting percentage. Florida remains the only team in the SEC with 20 or more wins this season.
The Gators will look to extend their nine-match winning streak and close out the regular season Sunday at Alabama (10-13, 2-12) in Tuscaloosa at 3 p.m.
