No. 4 Florida Volleyball Sweeps South Carolina to Set Up Shot at SEC Crown
No. 4 Florida volleyball is one win away from securing at least a share of the Southeastern Conference regular-season title.
The Gators swept South Carolina (25-16, 25-18, 25-22) on Friday at the O’Connell Center in front of 4,563 fans, improving to 20-2 overall and 11-1 in conference play. Florida has won seven consecutive matches, including five straight sweeps, and remains undefeated at home at 11-0.
A victory over Georgia on Sunday would guarantee Florida at least a share of its 26th SEC regular-season championship, more than any other program in conference history and its first since 2022.
Florida hit .377 with 50 kills and just 10 attack errors on 106 attempts, compared with South Carolina’s .211 hitting percentage.
Junior opposite Logan King led the Gators with 14 kills on a .462 hitting percentage, four block assists and eight digs. Alec Rothe and Kamryn Chaney each added 12 kills, while setter Taylor Parks recorded 37 assists and nine digs.
King’s impact extended beyond attacking, with Florida coach Ryan Theis highlighting her ability to play all six rotations while handling serve-receive responsibilities.
“She’s one of the few in the country, and she had a couple of pass-to-hits that were just really impressive inside out footwork patterns,” Theis said.
King also credited sophomore libero Lily Hayes, who recorded nine digs, for helping her adjust to those responsibilities.
“She’s definitely a leader, definitely in the back row,” King said. “Especially with me and my, maybe not as much experience serve receiving, she really takes a big role to kind of help me understand what I’m doing. She’s really, really good at guiding me.”
Florida opened the match with its strongest offensive set, hitting .645 with 20 kills and no attack errors on 31 attempts.
Chaney recorded seven kills in the first set, while Parks repeatedly found Rothe on quick attacks through the middle. Despite South Carolina hitting .429, the Gators steadily built their lead before Rothe closed the set with a kill for a 25-16 victory.
South Carolina opened the second set with a 2-0 lead, but Florida responded with a run that forced an early Gamecocks timeout at 7-3.
King recorded six kills and a service ace in the set, while senior Kira Hutson contributed a kill and an ace.
The Gamecocks fought back behind Borgman, whose three kills fueled a four-point run that cut Florida’s lead to 14-11. Theis called timeout, and Rothe responded with a kill coming out of the break.
Florida regained control at the net, recording five blocks in the second set before winning 25-18.
The third set proved more challenging.
With senior weekend underway, Florida opened with Chaney, Hutson and fifth-year middle blocker Amaya Thomas in the lineup. South Carolina rallied from a 5-1 deficit to take a 7-5 lead, forcing another Florida timeout.
The set featured 10 ties and five lead changes, with neither team able to build much separation. Tied at 20, Florida scored four consecutive points, including a Thomas kill, to reach match point.
South Carolina saved two match points before Thomas and King combined for a block to complete the sweep, 25-22.
Despite Rothe’s efficient performance (12 kills on a .579 hitting percentage), Theis believed Florida missed some opportunities to involve her more in the final set.
“Alec is a force up there, and she’s difficult to stop,” Theis said. “I think in the third, we had some situations where we probably could have forced it a little bit to try and get her another couple looks, and so we’ll look at that and try and get her a couple more balls Sunday.”
South Carolina (9-13, 2-10 SEC) entered the match near the bottom of the conference standings but had defeated Florida in the teams’ previous meeting last season.
The Gamecocks were led by Olivia Borgman, who recorded a match-high 15 kills. Ceci Vance added eight, while Kiana Dinn finished with 23 assists. South Carolina challenged Florida in the final set but struggled to match the Gators’ offensive efficiency throughout the night.
Florida will close its regular-season home schedule against Georgia at 1 p.m. Sunday. The Gators have yet to lose at the O’Connell Center this season and now have an opportunity to finish undefeated at home while securing at least a share of the SEC championship.
Category: Gator Sports, Gators Volleyball
