No. 16 Gators Volleyball Knocks Off No. 3 Pittsburgh in Five Sets
The No. 16 Florida Gators came into Sunday at the AVCA First Serve Showcase eager to avenge their opening night loss to No. 6 Stanford. They did just that and with flair too, upsetting No. 3 Pittsburgh in five set, comeback fashion.
The win is Florida’s first AVCA top-3 victory since beating No. 2 Stanford in 2023.
CAN WE GET A GO GATORS!!!#GoGators | Presented by @WellsFargo pic.twitter.com/VuyCbh13zh
— Gators Volleyball (@GatorsVB) August 24, 2025
Pitt (0-2) started the scoring early with a 7-1 run and hit at an impressive .393% clip, clinching the first set of the eventual five. Reigning AVCA National Player of the Year Olivia Babcock notched nine kills and hit .471% in the first set.
Florida (1-1) battled back in set two to level the match with Pitt. It was domination rotation for the Gators, as they served five aces and went on a 9-2 scoring streak to create a wide margin and never look back. The adjustments made by Gators head coach Ryan Theis saw Pitt’s hitting percentage dive to .033% in the second set.
The Panthers returned to their first set form in the third set, instituting a 12-4 lead on a 9-1 stretch. Olivia Babcock served well and added kill after kill to win the set for her team by a 25-15 score.
Staring down defeat at every turn, the Gators did not back down and rose to the challenge. In the most competitive set of the match, neither team gained an overwhelming edge. Florida fended off a Pittsburgh match point before winning three straight points, the last an ace from 2024 SEC Freshman of the Year Jaela Auguste, to send the match to a deciding fifth set. The fourth set saw 11 ties, nearly double the six that occurred in the preceding three sets.
In the final race to 15, Florida limited its own errors and forced multiple key errors from Pittsburgh’s attacking force. After an even score at 11, the Gators weathered the storm and closed out the set 15-13 via Jordyn Byrd’s back-to-back kills, stunning the Panthers in five sets.
Despite the loss, Pitt’s Olivia Babcock showed up in a big way and made her case as the early front-runner to repeat as AVCA National Player of the Year. The junior right-side hitter led the match with 25 kills, notching her 1,000th career kill in the process. The performance was Babcock’s 7th match with 20+ kills in her career.
As for Florida, it was a weekend to remember for multiple Gators debutants. Texas transfer Jordyn Byrd reached a career-high 23 kills, totaling 40 kills in the two matches of her debut weekend. Gators coach Ryan Theis also added the first win of his tenure, noting Florida’s determination when speaking on the win.
“Just an amazing team effort,” Theis said. “I think everybody who isn’t injured got in and helped in different stretches and made big plays … It’s fun watching these guys compete, they are a fun group.”
Jaela Auguste added nine kills to Florida’s total, in addition to four crucial aces at opportune times. Her connection with Alexis Stucky, who set up the offense through 11 digs and 44 assists, played a big part in achieving Florida’s first win of the season.
Florida returns home from the AVCA First Serve Showcase with an important win and prepared for the season to be in full swing. The Gators will host an exhibition against PVK Olymp Praha, a professional team hailing from Prague, Czech Republic. The exhibition takes place Tuesday night in the O’Connell Center, with first serve at 7 p.m..
Category: Gator Sports, Gators Volleyball, NCAA, Volleyball
