Florida Volleyball Upsets No. 16 Tennessee in Five-Set Battle

The Florida volleyball team handed No. 16 Tennessee its first loss at home Wednesday after in a five-set upset.

Timeouts and challenges combined with 41 ties and 18 lead changes extended this rivalry match to about three hours in resulting to a 3-2 (19-25, 25-23, 25-15, 22-25 and 15-13) victory for the Gators.

For just the fourth time in its 16 matches this season, Florida took the second set and is undefeated when doing so. After a rocky start to the season, the Gators have fought back to a 10-6 overall record, 5-2 in the SEC.

“With the new coaching staff, a lot of new players, I think when we get wins like this, it just shows everyone that we can compete with the top, and we can compete with the best,” Florida outside hitter Jordyn Byrd said. “And we were the underdogs coming into this year just because we have so many changes, but I think winning against teams like this is showing everyone that we have what it takes.”

Tennessee (13-3, 4-2) led the conference in hitting percentage coming into the match. While the Volunteers tallied 74 kills compared to Florida’s 61, hitting efficiency is a category that the Gators had the advantage. The Gators got better from sets one to four in the hitting game, elevating from a 0.182 to a 0.364 efficiency. Florida hit 22.2% to end the match with a 26.7% hitting clip.

The Volunteers put up 7.7% and 10.3% in hitting in sets three and five, respectively. Tennessee recorded 30 attack errors that, combined with miscommunication, ultimately led to its demise.

Serving was a problem area for both sides. For the Gators, it was 10 service errors and just three aces, while the Volunteers tallied nine and two. This is a front Florida coach Ryan Theis has tried to get more consistent in all season.

Once again leading the Gators in kills was Byrd despite a slow start in hitting efficiency. In addition to leading Florida with five total blocks, the Texas transfer recorded 23 kills, just one off her career high in the 12th-consecutive match with double digits in the category.

“I play for my teammates,” Byrd said. “They always show that they have confidence in me, so I go out there, and I just keep swinging for them.”

The Gators have needed their right-side attackers to help put more points on the board all season. Although opposite hitter Milica Vidačić did not punch a kill until the second set, the freshman from Serbia did exactly what Florida needed in the end, securing 12 kills on a 0.414 kill percentage.

Tennessee outside hitter Hayden Kubik nailed 24 kills to lead the match and opposite hitter Paityn Chapman followed with 15.

Both squad’s top setters achieved double-doubles, as UF redshirt junior Alexis Stucky tallied 52 assists and 11 digs. She also had four kills. Tennessee’s Caroline Kerr, also a redshirt junior, recorded a career-high 57 assists and season-high 15 digs.

Florida’s schedule does not get any easier, as the Gators head to No. 3 Kentucky (13-2, 6-0) for a 3 p.m. match on Sunday (ESPN).

Category: Gator Sports, Gators Volleyball, NCAA, SEC, Volleyball