MATCH STATS
- Florida defeats South Carolina, 3-0 (25-17, 25-16, 25-17)
- Florida improves to 17-1; South Carolina drops to 10-11
- Gainesville, Florida
- Attendance: 2516
- Box Score
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The Gators swept the Gamecocks on Friday night in Gainesville. Senior outside hitter, Shainah Joseph, led Florida to victory.
Florida hit .296 on the night, with a .379 hitting percentage in the third set, as South Carolina was held to a .066 clip hitting at set high .103 in the second. The Gators out blocked the Gamecocks 10-5.
Gator setters Allie Monserez and Cheyenne Huskey combined for 32 assists and six digs. On the other side of the net, Courtney Koehler notched 17 assists and four digs.
Two Florida players posted double-figure kills led by Shainah Joseph with 13 kills on a .458 clip. Carli Snyder put up 10 kills on a .250 hitting percentage.
Louisville’s offense was led by Abreia Epps with seven kills on a .125 clip.
Both teams will continue with SEC Play as Florida travels to Mississippi State and South Carolina takes on Auburn.
PRESS RELEASES
Courtesy of Florida Athletics
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Fifth-year senior Shainah Josephstarred for the No. 4 Gators (17-1, 9-1 SEC) once again, leading the team with 13 kills and a .458 hitting percentage in a sweep of South Carolina Friday night.
Joseph’s 13 kills and 14 points were both career highs for a three-set match, topping the nine kills and 11 points she had against N.C. State earlier this year (Sept. 3). It also marked the fourth time this year and fifth time in her career Joseph tallied 10-plus kills in a match.
Senior outside hitter Carli Snyder totaled a match-high 14.5 points on 10 kills, three service aces and three block assists. Three-time All-American middle blocker Rhamat Alhassan finished with a match-high six blocks and added nine kills. Two points into the match, Alhassan recorded the 503rd block assist of her career, breaking Benavia Jenkins’ (2000-03) school record.
Florida’s defense stymied South Carolina’s offense, holding it to a .066 hitting percentage. The first and third sets were particularly impressive for the Gators, who held the Gamecocks to an .038 clip and .048 clip, respectively. Florida also limited Mikayla Shields, who entered the night ranked sixth in the SEC in kills per set (3.60) and seventh in points per set (4.15), two kills and two points—both of which came late in the third set. Moreover, South Carolina’s Mikayla Robinson, the No. 10-ranked hitter in the SEC (.329), registered a -.083 clip and three kills against Florida’s defense.
Next up for the Gators is a trip to Starkville, where they face Mississippi state in a 1 p.m. ET match Sunday.
NOTABLES
- Florida has held six opponents below a .100 hitting percentage this season, with five of those defensive efforts coming in SEC play
- The Gators recorded double-digit blocks for a seventh consecutive match and for the 15th time in 18 matches this year
- Florida posted five-plus service aces for the ninth time this season—it had 12 such matches in 2016
- Shainah Joseph hit above .450 (with at least 10 total attempts) for the second straight match and sixth time this season
- Six of Joseph’s 10 career matches with 10-plus points have been recorded this season
- Carli Snyder recorded three service aces (all consecutively in the first set) for the fifth time in her career and this season
- Rhamat Alhassan finished with five-plus blocks for the 14th time this year
- Morgyn Greer tied her season high with three kills and set a new season high with 4.5 points
- Greer also recorded her first career service ace to win Florida its 25th point in the second set
- Florida improved its all-time record against South Carolina to 55-7, and to 50-2 under head coachMary Wise
Courtesy of South Carolina Athletics
GAINESVILLE, FLA. – South Carolina dropped a 3-0 decision to No. 4 Florida in Gainesville Friday night, 25-17, 25-16, 25-17. The Gamecocks are now 10-11 this season, 3-6 in SEC play, while the Gators now stand at 17-1 (9-1 SEC). Abreia Epps led the team with seven kills in the match.
SET 1: The Gamecocks scrapped early and often in the opening game, but were unable to find holes in the Gator block. Florida broke away at the midway point in the set for the 25-17 win, holding South Carolina to a .038 success rate on attacks. Aubrey Ezell spearheaded the defense with some acrobatic digs, and finished with eight in the game. Following a Claire Edwards solo block, Carolina trailed just 12-11, but a 4-0 run for UF put them back in the driver’s seat for the home stretch.
SET 2: South Carolina took advantage of Florida miscues to start the set to keep pace, as the Gators had a pair of service aces and four unforced attack errors among the Gamecocks’ first 12 points. A 4-0 run out of the media timeout expanded Florida’s lead from 14-12 to 18-12, and the home side rode the momentum to a 25-16 win.
SET 3: Florida’s defense stifled South Carolina throughout the final set, holding the Gamecocks to a .048 hitting percentage in the game despite getting five of their seven kills down the home stretch without an error. Florida led wire-to-wire in the set and closed out the sweep with a 25-17 win.
STAT OF THE MATCH
The Gamecocks were unable to manage Florida’s size at the net, as the Gators out-hit them .296 to .066 and out-blocked Carolina 10-5, helping them sideout at 73 percent. South Carolina’s hitting percentage was its lowest of the season.
UP NEXT
The Gamecocks return home for a Sunday rematch against Auburn. South Carolina won 3-1 at Auburn on Oct. 18, snapping a four-game losing streak. First serve on Sunday will be at at 1:30 p.m. and airs live on Watch ESPN.
Leave a Reply