Unseeded Florida’s run towards the Final Four came to an end on Saturday night, as the No. 17 Gator volleyball team fell in four sets (22-25, 25-23, 14-25, 20-25) to third-seeded Illinois in the NCAA Championship regional final hosted by the Gators. With the win, the Fighting Illini advance to the Final Four for the third time in program history. Florida finishes the year at 27-6 and reached the regional final for the first time since 2005.
The Gators were led by senior All-American Kelly Murphy (Wilmington, Ill.), who tallied the 30th triple-double of her career with 13 kills, 21 assists and a match-high 17 digs. Fellow senior Kristy Jaeckel (Littleton, Colo.) notched her 10th double-double of the season with 19 kills and 11 digs. Jaeckel registered a team-high 19.5 points.
Murphy and Jaeckel finish their careers with their names etched in the Florida record books. Murphy ranks seventh all-time in sets played (447), eighth in kills (1,306), eighth in assists (2,671), 10th in service aces (126) and 10th in points (1,567.5). Jaeckel is now fifth all-time in attacks (3, 405), seventh in kills (1,331), ninth in points (1,588.0) and 10th in block solos (58).
Defensively, redshirt freshman libero Taylor Unroe (Muncie, Ind.) contributed 13 digs and a career-high eight assists against the Fighting Illini while sophomore setter Chanel Brown (Tempe, Ariz.) dished a team-high 25 assists to move her into 11th all-time in program history already with 1,285 career assists.
Once again, Florida’s middles Chloe Mann (Gainesville, Fla.) and Betsy Smith (Atlanta, Ga.) were solid, combining for 18 kills and five blocks on the evening. The Gators were outhit for only the second time this season, .225-.338.
The Gators and Fighting Illini dueled for the first several points of the first frame, until Jaeckel fired a bullet into the Illinois defense to give Florida its first two-point lead, 4-2. Both teams continued to battle, tying the set another four times, before Smith ripped the seam of the block to give the Orange and Blue another two-point lead, 9-7. The Fighting Illini slowly gained ground on the Gators, never falling more than two points behind, until Illinois took the lead from Florida at 16-15, forcing the Gators into a timeout. Both teams fought, but neither took more than a one-point lead over the other, until an Illinois service ace pushed the Fighting Illini ahead, 21-19. Back-to-back Florida errors and an Illinois kill set up the Fighting Illini at set point, 24-19. Florida went on a 3-0 run after a Mann-Wiggs block, but could not complete the comeback, dropping the first set, 25-22.
Illinois took an early 2-0 lead over the Orange and Blue to start the second stanza, taking a three-point lead at 6-3. An Unroe service ace changed the momentum of the set, tying the score at 7-7, and a Jaeckel attack gave Florida its first lead of the set, 8-7. A Brown service ace pushed the Gators ahead by two, and a Smith-Jaeckel block forced Illinois into a timeout with the Gators leading 11-8. The Fighting Illini battled their way back into the frame, taking the lead from the Gators at 20-19, but Florida kept tying the score and finally took the lead back at 23-22. Jaeckel hit around a block to put the Gators at set-point, 24-23, and an Unroe bump set to Jaeckel gave Florida the 25-23 victory, tying the match at one set apiece going into intermission.
The Gators fell behind the Fighting Illini, 2-0, to start the third set. Illinois forced the Gators into a timeout after taking a four-point lead over the Orange and Blue, 6-2. The Gators could not seem to find their rhythm, as Florida called a timeout with Illinois leading, 15-6. An Anderson-Murphy stuff block put the Gators within ten of the Fighting Illini at 20-10, but the Gators were unable to overcome the early deficit as they fell to the Fighting Illini, 25-14, in the third.
The Orange and Blue came out hot and took an early 3-1 lead. The two teams continued to battle with the Gators fighting for a fifth set and the Fighting Illini with their sights set on the Final Four. Illinois took its first two-point lead at 10-8 and forced the Gators into timeout at 12-9. Back-to-back Mann quick kills put Florida one point from tying the set, and an Illinois attack error secured the comeback, 15-15. However, the Orange and Blue were unable to take the lead, and were forced to call a timeout with Illinois leading at 20-17. Florida battled, but fell just short, dropping the fourth and final set, 25-20.
