GAINESVILLE, Fla. (EETV) – On Friday, No. 22 Florida swept Auburn in three straight sets in Exactech Arena. This marks only the second time this season that the Lady Tigers have not won at least one set in a match.
Entering this game, Florida ranked atop the Southeastern Conference in service aces averaged per set, with 1.96. They were able to add six more aces to their total after their matchup against Auburn. With only four program wins against Florida, Auburn knew they needed to be at their best.
Early in the first set, the Tigers were going toe-to-toe with the Gators in what appeared to be a close competition. By point 11 of the set, Florida pulled away and went on two quick scoring runs to put them up by six.
Inconsistency at the serving line proved to be a recurring issue for the Tigers as graduate Chelsea McCurdy had a service ace directly followed by a service error. As a result of two communication errors from the Tigers, Coach Brent Crouch called a last-minute timeout while his squad was down 20-13.
Auburn was never able to get comfortable in the first set and only gained one more point after the timeout. The Gators took the first set in a commanding fashion, 25-14, ending on a five-point scoring run.
The second set started out rough for both teams, as the first four of six points scored were based on attacking or service errors. After failing to control their hitting, three straight kills from the Tigers gave them the spark they needed to get back in the match.
However, Auburn, typically known for their ability to cause frustration at the net, was not able to get their hands on the quick hitting of Kennedy Martin. She had nine kills in this set alone, and the Gators had three more blocks than the Tigers. This was led by the blocking duo of Taylor Parks and Jaela Auguste, who shut down Lakin Laurendine in back-to-back rallies.
Auburn was unable to turn things around, and Florida won the second set 25-18. After securing larger runs in the second set, the Tigers would need to keep that up in hopes of keeping this match alive.
They kicked things off in the third set with two blocks but were never able to successfully pull away from the Gators. After getting themselves in a nine-point hole, a late rally led by Madison Scheer provided some light for Auburn.
The Lady Tigers responded to Florida with four unanswered points, two of which were service aces from Madison Scheer. This was a career high for her, and it helped bring her team back into striking distance, 20-15.
Despite the late possibility, Mary Wise’s Gators put an end to Auburn’s run and closed out the final set, 25-19.
Auburn will look to tidy up hitting errors and hitting their targets. Florida’s leading attacker was Kennedy Martin with 20 kills, whereas Auburn’s leading attacker was Madison Scheer with only nine kills. Taylor Parks singlehandedly had 12 more assists than both Kalei Edson and Peyton Dunn had combined.
There are only two home games left for the Lady Tigers in Neville Arena. After going 26 days without a win, Auburn Volleyball is hoping that the Auburn faithful will help boost their chances of winning against No. 15 Texas. That game will be played at 6:30 p.m. on November 15, and it has been deemed Military Appreciation and Alumni Night.
