The No. 1 University of Florida volleyball team, riding a 17-match win streak, returns to the Stephen C. O’Connell Center to play host to its final regular-season matches of the 2010 campaign. The Gators take on Mississippi State at 7 p.m. ET Thursday on Fox Sports Florida, before playing host to Alabama at 1 p.m. ET on Senior Day Sunday.
Thursday’s match will be televised live on Fox Sports Florida with Larry Vettel and Missy Whittemore calling the action, and on WRUF Sports Radio 850 with Tom Collett. Fans at the match can take advantage of the $1 menu, including hot dogs, sodas, popcorn and water at concession stands. It is also Santa Fe College Night and all SFC students, faculty and staff receive free admission with their valid Santa Fe College ID.
Florida is 42-14 (.750) all-time when playing on a Thursday, including a 20-5 mark (.800) under the direction of head coach Mary Wise. The Gators’ last Thursday match came on Dec. 3, 2009, when UF swept College of Charleston in the NCAA First Round in Gainesville, Fla.
The Gators (22-1, 15-0 Southeastern Conference) are ranked in the nation’s top spot for the fifth consecutive week, tying the school record with the 1996 team for most consecutive weeks at No. 1 in the AVCA Top-25 Poll. Florida is 20-1 all-time when playing as the nation’s top-ranked team.
“Mississippi State is a team that, unfortunately, lost one of its key players to injuries early in the season and that was really a huge loss to them,” Wise said. “They feature a middle blocker, Ashley Newsome, now in her senior year who is a really, really fun player to watch. She is an elite-level athlete and she is a tough match-up for anybody. We did a pretty good job the first time we played them on the road and we hope we can do the same thing on Thursday night.”
Florida holds a two-match lead in the SEC with five matches remaining in the league race. LSU is in second place with a 13-2 conference record, while Tennessee is in third place with a 12-4 league mark. Provided the Gators and Tigers both remain unbeaten over their next three matches, Florida could clinch at least a share of the program’s 19th SEC regular-season championship with a victory at Arkansas on Nov. 19.
The Gators have excelled over the course of their last five matches due in large part to a powerful blocking brigade. Over its last five matches combined, Florida is averaging an unbelievable 3.18 blocks per set. During that span, sophomore right-side Tangerine Wiggs (Seattle, Wash.) is averaging an impressive 1.47 blocks per set, while junior middle blocker Cassandra Anderson (Bakersfield, Calif.) and senior middle blocker Lauren Bledsoe (Long Beach, Calif.) are chipping in 1.35 blocks per set apiece over the past five matches.
Florida ranks among the nation’s top-20 in three different statistical categories. The Gators are 14th nationally in hitting percentage (.286), 15th nationally in blocks per set (2.76) and 18th in the country in service aces per set (1.68).
The Gators are led offensively by junior right-side/setter Kelly Murphy (Wilmington, Ill.), who is the only player to rank in the SEC’s top-10 individually (all matches combined) in hitting percentage, kills per set and service aces simultaneously. Murphy is the SEC’s service ace leader, averaging 0.38 aces per set. In conference play only, she is averaging 0.45 service aces per set. Murphy ranks first on the team and eighth in the SEC with 3.18 kills per set, while ranking fifth in the league with a .372 hitting efficiency. Murphy also adds 5.48 assists per set, 2.12 digs per set and 0.67 blocks per set.
Senior outside hitter Callie Rivers (Winter Park, Fla.) and junior outside hitter Kristy Jaeckel (Littleton, Colo.) follow with 2.42 and 2.40 kills per set, respectively. Rivers ranks second in the SEC with 0.32 service aces per set and is second on Florida’s team with 2.32 digs per set.
Freshman setter Chanel Brown (Tempe, Ariz.) is the squad’s assists leader, averaging 5.49 dishes per set, while senior libero Erin Fleming (Orlando, Fla.) heads the team’s back-row effort, ranking ninth in the SEC with 3.54 digs per set.
Three Gators average better than 1.0 blocks per set, led by Anderson, who ranks second in the SEC with 1.19 blocks per set. Bledsoe is fifth in the SEC with 1.09 blocks per set, while Wiggs ranks 10th in the league with 1.01 rejections per set.
The Gators and Bulldogs meet for the 38th time in the history of the two programs with Florida leading the all-time series 37-0, including a perfect 28-0 mark under the direction of Wise. The Gators hold an impressive record of 111-3 all-time in sets played against Mississippi State. Florida is 17-0 all-time against the Bulldogs when the match is played in Gainesville, Fla.
Mississippi State enters Friday’s match with an 11-15 overall record and a 3-12 mark in SEC play. The Bulldogs have lost five consecutive matches and nine of their last 10 contests.
The Bulldogs are led offensively by junior outside hitter Caitlin Rance, who ranks sixth in the SEC with 3.58 kills per set. Senior middle blocker Ashley Newsome and sophomore outside hitter Chanel Baker follow with 3.07 and 1.62 kills per set, respectively.
Newsome is the SEC’s leading blocker (all matches combined), averaging a league-best 1.21 blocks per set. Freshman setter Paris Perret ranks fourth in the SEC with 9.09 assists per set. Senior libero Kayla Woodard is fourth in the SEC in digs per set with 4.33, while Newsome adds a squad-best 18 service aces this season.
Head coach Jenny Hazelwood is in her second season at the helm of the Mississippi State program with a record of 20-27 (.351) with the Bulldogs. Hazelwood, in her 11th season as a collegiate head coach, has a career record of 108-260 (.293).
Complete results and a recap of Thursday’s match will be available at GatorZone.com.
For all of the latest information on Florida volleyball, please log on to www.gatorzone.com/volleyball. Follow Florida volleyball on Twitter at www.twitter.com/GatorZoneVB and Coach Mary Wise on Twitter at www.twitter.com/GatorMary.
QUICK NOTES
· The Gators are 42-14 (.750) all-time when playing on a Thursday, including a 20-5 mark (.800) under the direction of head coach Mary Wise.
· UF holds an impressive 111-3 record all-time in sets played against Mississippi State and a 37-0 record in the all-time series.
· Florida needs just three more victories to extend the nation’s longest streak of consecutive 25-win seasons to 20. The Gators have posted at least 25 victories in each of the last 19 campaigns.
· The Gators are ranked No. 1 in the American Volleyball Coaches Association Poll for the fifth consecutive week and the 10th time in program history. Florida is 20-1 all-time when playing as the nation’s top-ranked squad.
· Florida’s 625 victories since the start of the 1991 campaign lead the nation during that span.
· Alabama and Mississippi State are two of four SEC opponents that head coach Mary Wise has never lost to during her Florida tenure. Wise also is undefeated against Auburn and Ole Miss.
· This weekend will mark the final regular-season home weekend for Florida seniors Lauren Bledsoe, Erin Fleming and Callie Rivers. The trio will be recognized in a ceremony on Sunday.
· Florida ranks among the nation’s top-20 in three different statistical categories. The Gators are 14th nationally in hitting percentage (.286), 15th nationally in blocks per set (2.76) and 18th in the country in service aces per set (1.68).
· Florida is the only team to have three players rank among the SEC’s top-10 individually in service aces per set (all matches combined). Junior right-side/setter Kelly Murphy leads the SEC in service aces per set with 0.38. In conference matches only, Murphy averages a league-best 0.45 aces per set.
· Murphy is looking to become the 17th player in program history to reach the 1,000-kill plateau for her career. Murphy has 933 career kills and needs 67 more put-downs to reach 1,000. She currently ranks 20th all-time in school history in career kills.
· Junior middle blocker Cassandra Anderson ranks second in the SEC with 1.19 blocks per set and is seventh in the league with a .368 hitting efficiency.
SEC VOLLEYBALL STANDINGS (AS OF NOV. 9, 2010)
Eastern Division
| Team | Overall | SEC |
| Florida | 22-1 | 15-0 |
| Tennessee | 21-5 | 12-4 |
| Kentucky | 14-12 | 8-8 |
| Georgia | 12-15 | 4-12 |
| South Carolina | 5-20 | 2-13 |
Western Division
| Team | Overall | SEC |
| LSU | 22-2 | 13-2 |
| Ole Miss | 17-8 | 11-5 |
| Auburn | 17-11 | 8-8 |
| Arkansas | 13-13 | 7-8 |
| Mississippi State | 11-15 | 3-12 |
| Alabama | 10-15 | 2-13 |
THURSDAY’S SEC MATCHES
Mississippi State at Florida – 7 p.m. ET (FS Florida)
FRIDAY’S SEC MATCHES
Alabama at South Carolina – 7 p.m. ET
Arkansas at Kentucky – 7 p.m. ET
Georgia at Ole Miss – 8 p.m. ET
LSU at Tennessee – 3:30 p.m. ET
SATURDAY’S SEC MATCHES
Mississippi State at South Carolina – 7 p.m.
SUNDAY’S SEC MATCHES
Alabama at Florida – 1 p.m. ET
Arkansas at Tennessee – 2 p.m. ET (CSS)
Ole Miss at Auburn – 8 p.m. ET
LSU at Kentucky – 1:30 p.m. ET
