(VB) Ongoing Volleyball Thread

I don’t know how I forgot Angie McGinnis but she’s definitely up there as well. Imagine this team with a setter like her - lights out. Rhamat Alhassan is way up there also. Too many great players to choose from, lol, but wanted to give them their due.

 

Now that UF is using its roster in an expanded fashion, I like our chances against anyone.

Merritt Beason will always be one of my favorites even though she cut and ran while captain of the UF team. She will always be a Robert Palmer Girl to me:



It is too bad for Baby Gators too young to remember the Robert Palmer video.

 

Pitt also has the coach I’d love to see in Hogtown

 

Why sports is great:

 

Don't often see a 5th set domination like the Gators showed vs Mizzou. Martin was unstoppable. 8th straight win, now on Ky heels, half game back.

 

CMW’s Gators turned up the afterburners in set 5 and were not going to be denied the W, .600 hitting percentage.

 

Two news headlines, 11/18/2024 for Gator Volleyball
Volleyball’s Kennedy Martin Tabs Fifth Consecutive SEC Weekly Award - Florida Gators

Florida Volleyball Improves to No. 20 in Newest AVCA/TARAFLEX Top-25 Poll - Florida Gators

 

Our RPI is up to 19, and with winnable matches ahead of us, us playing a good chunk of the season without our best player, and the politics of hosting and who is just ahead of us (Big12 getting 4 and the SEC 2 if it’s really close on paper seems unlikely), hosting is a real possibility. But gotta win our matches for it to matter.

 

I'm excited about the possibility of the O'Dome not going dark after Saturday. KPI has us ranked 15 (host!).

As you say, the politics would seem to be in our favor, on a number of different factors.

 

Just win. Can't have another South Carolina.

 

Huge match at Auburn tonight at 7 PM ET on the SEC Network.

Auburn is on an 8-match losing streak, but you can bet the Gators will get their best knockout punch. I watched Auburn upset Kentucky early in the season coming back from down 0-2. The Tigers are capable of winning every time they step on the floor. It's hard to imagine the Tigers losing 8 straight matches, but I don't have any information on what caused AU to meltdown. I don't really care enough to find out. I just hope the Gators don't take this match for granted for even one second.

 

Rick Nold was their coach a few years back, and a friend of mine. He always gave Mary a tussle with inferior players. In the fwiw department lol

 

First two points for AU were attacks were where we set the block off the net….memo, can’t block an attack setting the block off the net. S H E E S H

 

Well, I’m sorry but Stucky just isn’t moving well. Out of system offense and defensively off the net is not vintage Stucky imo. Very good teams will exploit her mobility by having her run all over the court. Book that. Bummer

 

25 assists in a set and a half, tough crowd.

 

Yeah...5 players with 4plus kills in 1st set team hitting over 300 but sure, pull stucky. Parks set Kennedy 9 straight in set 3 and has places zero fear in opposing hitters at the net. And as I said weeks ago but was laughed at, they don't want Hardin anywhere near a pass. All Mary wants right now is tge Kennedy show and Parks will set her 3 to 1 for the rest of team. That will win you games now but will not beat quality teams later. It's apparent why we have endured AC and I Martin working out their off games because there's nothing on the bench Mary is comfortable with.

 

where is AC?

 

Lost the 3rd set...

 

11 kills in one set yet not enough to beat an awful auburn team. Too predictable when one player gets 70% of the swings...great for her numbers but not great when you need a kill somewhere else. We were balanced and scoring and winning, yes stucky is a little slower but balance and net defense has to be a premium in my book.

 

Injured ankle, I believe.