Florida Volleyball Starts Season With Exhibition Win

The Florida Gators volleyball team opened the 2024 season on Saturday by winning an exhibition against the Georgia Southern Eagles, 3-1. The Gators were led by a strong contingent of freshmen and star sophomore Kennedy Martin in their continuation of past dominance.

Impressive Freshman Showing

With the match in the Stephen O’Connell Center being a scrimmage, it was unsurprising Florida coach Mary Wise played the majority of her freshmen. What was surprising was how well they stepped into the limelight.

Freshman setter Taylor Parks and middle blocker Alec Rothe both got the nod from Wise to start, with Parks shining in her debut. Parks tallied 46 assists, including the game-winner to freshman outside hitter Lauren Harden. She was joined on the court throughout the four-set match by freshmen liberos Ella Vogel and Bella Lee, along with freshman middle blocker Jaela Auguste, who provided a notable spark off the bench that included three blocks.

SEASON PREVIEW 👀#GoGators pic.twitter.com/RyuZf5xepA

— Gators Volleyball (@GatorsVB) August 24, 2024

Dominant Returning Stars

Last fall, Martin started in all 29 matches en route to All-SEC and All-Freshman team nominations. She was the Gators’ most consistent offensive option, dominating from the outside and opposite hitter positions. This season it seems like it’ll be much the same. The former National Division I Player of the Week registered 27 kills in just four sets. That total was one kill shy of her career high 28 against Tennessee last November. Martin’s most notable moment came in the third set, where she logged 12 kills to pull out a 25-23 set win. The Gators finished the match with a 17-15 fourth-set win.

Martin was joined in posting strong performances by senior Elli McKissock. The libero was a force on the defensive end, gobbling up 16 digs. McKissock returned for her fifth season after a year that saw her dig double-digit balls in 27 of her matches. Wise emphasized the importance of McKissock during the postseason last year.

“All of the little things that the great liberos do – that’s what Elli does for us,” Wise said. “[We ask] a lot of Elli as the most veteran player.“

Another notable returnee for the Gators will be redshirt sophomore setter Alexis Stucky, who is coming off tearing her ACL and MCL last season. Parks got the start over Stucky in the exhibition match in order to allow Stucky additional time to recover. Stucky can be expected back this season.

Good to be back Gator Nation🐊#GoGators pic.twitter.com/65upSgC4Ut

— Gators Volleyball (@GatorsVB) August 25, 2024

Onto The Regular Season

Florida begins the regular season in the Rocky Mountain state, facing Colorado St., University of Northern Colorado and Michigan St. in Fort Collins and Greeley, Colo., Friday-Sunday. The Gators will be back in the O’ Dome on Sept. 6, to welcome the University of South Florida.