Florida Volleyball on the Road in Starkville

Florida football isn’t the only Gator team taking on a squad of Bulldogs this weekend.

No. 13 Florida (18-4, 9-1) heads into Starkville for a Sunday afternoon rematch against Mississippi State (5-18, 1-9).

https://twitter.com/GatorsVB/status/1055446632484032512

Last Meeting

The first matchup between these two squads ended in a 3-0 sweep in Gainesville. Florida took the match 25-12, 25-21 and 25-14 on that Sunday afternoon.

The Gators came out of the gate ripping it offensively against the Bulldogs. They hit .524 and .405 in sets one and two respectively.

Sophomore outside hitter Paige Hammons paced the team that day as she tied her then-career-best 11 kills and recorded a hitting efficiency of .550.

Hammons even registered two of the Gators’ seven service aces that day.

https://twitter.com/GatorsVB/status/1043953617546465282

Head Coach Mary Wise said afterward that Hammons’s offensive production and Allie Gregory’s defensive performance were the highlights of the match.

Although, Wise knows that playing at home isn’t the same as being on the road.

“It’s a different game when you’re playing on the road,” Wise said at Gator Talk on Monday. “We have to be ready to go from the get-go.”

Struggling Bulldogs

Mississippi State will enter Sunday on a seven-match losing streak. Their lone win the SEC came on a five-setter against the Auburn Tigers on Sept. 26.

It was three days after being swept in Gainesville by Florida.

https://twitter.com/HailStateVB/status/1055293649355972613

They currently rank at the bottom in multiple major statistics against conference opponents:

• Hitting percentage
• Opposing hitting efficiency
• Kills
• Digs

But, Bulldogs head coach Julie Darty said she saw good growth from her team after suffering a loss against the Ole Miss Rebels on Wednesday night.

Raking in the Recognition

Senior middle blocker is making the most of her final season.

Kellum was awarded SEC Defensive Player of the Week honors for the third time in the 2018 season.

Congrats to @tae_kellz on earning her 3️⃣rd SEC Defensive Player of the Week honor this season! https://t.co/lFBS4ey0UP#GoGators pic.twitter.com/KCYPPDbULx

— Gators Volleyball (@GatorsVB) October 22, 2018

She matched and set career highs in blocks in a week where the Gators established new program records for total team blocks in a match on two separate occasions.

Against Ole Miss, Kellum brought a dish of 12 roofs to the block party in Oxford. She proceeded to throw down 13 the following Sunday against the Missouri Tigers.

Kellum will look to continue her production against the Bulldogs on Sunday.

The match can be seen on SEC Network+ at 1 p.m. and radio coverage of the match can be found on the air waves of ESPN 98.1FM/850AM WRUF starting at 12:50 p.m.