Senior middle blocker Cassandra Anderson does not get enough touches.
According to coach Mary Wise, under-utilizing a four-year starter that led the Southeastern Conference in blocking last season is a trend that cannot continue when No. 13 Florida (9-3, 2-1 SEC) takes on Auburn (8-6, 2-2 SEC) on the road tonight at 8.
“We have to do a better job of getting her the ball,” Wise said. “She’s going to have a tough time scoring points for us if we don’t get her the ball.”
Anderson, a second-team All-SEC selection in 2010, recorded 140 total blocks and averaged 1.27 per set, but her numbers have been down this year.
She currently has a .293 hitting percentage and 0.8 blocks per set — both career-low marks.
However, a meeting with Wise following the Gators’ SEC opener may have put Anderson back on the right track.
“It was just about refocusing and trying to have my best year my senior year,” Anderson said.
In the two matches since, she has hit .379 with 11 kills and 4.5 blocks.
Wise specifically praised Anderson’s performance against Kentucky last Friday, calling it one of her best outings of the year.
While her statistics may not be up to par with previous seasons, Anderson has still made her mark in the box score in 2011.
Seven Gators have recorded at least 10 blocks this season, and of that group, Anderson is the only one yet to record a blocking error.
Additionally, she ranks second on the team in total blocks and blocks per set, trailing only junior Betsy Smith.
“She works really hard at blocking,” said Smith, also a middle blocker. “Blocking is her favorite thing to do. She’s really good at it and that’s something that all of us middles can look forward to.”
While Anderson has a history of good numbers, that success has not come easy.
She is 6-foot-1, which is considered undersized for a Division-I middle blocker.
Comparably, No. 9 Penn State, the four-time defending national champion, has three middle blockers on its roster standing at least 6-foot-4.
“It’s very seldom that we’re bigger than anyone else in the middle,” Wise said. “So we have to rely on [Anderson’s] foot speed and her IQ. She has to be ahead of the play, and she has that ability.”
Florida also relies on Anderson for her experience, which will come into play in tonight’s match against Auburn.
She cracked the starting lineup as a freshman in 2008 and has not looked back, seeing significant playing time on two SEC Champion squads.
“She just brings that level of calm stability where she’s like ‘I’ve been here before. We’ve been here as a team before,’” Smith said. “She just knows what she needs to do in those situations and it’s something to pull us all along.”
Gators middle blocker Cassandra Anderson (21) is second on the team in blocks, but coach Mary Wise said Florida wants to get her more involved against Auburn tonight at 8.
