With the best hitting percentage in the Southeastern Conference, the Gators’ offense is getting a lot of attention for the team’s recent streak of eight sweeps in a row.
But the members of Florida’s attack know the key to their kills all depend on the fingertips of senior Kelly Murphy and sophomore Chanel Brown, the Gators’ duo of setters.
Whether it’s setting a ball up after a tight pass close to the net or making a one-arm play, right-side hitter Tangerine Wiggs said Brown and Murphy have excelled at not just saving balls from bad passes, but making them playable so the attack can put the ball away.
“When it comes to me — all of my success — I couldn’t do it without Kelly and Chanel,” Wiggs said. “They’re so great at making plays when something doesn’t necessarily fit inside the box.”
For Brown in particular, those strides have become easier to make as she has gotten more comfortable in her new position.
“A year ago we were spending so much time with Chanel on the technical side of setting because she had come out of high school were she had been a hitter,” UF coach Mary Wise said. “Now, although she works on her technique every day, she’s also where she’s understanding the tactical side of the position. She’s light years from where she was a year ago.”
Brown has also improved as a setter through her relationship with Murphy, with whom she shares her playing time.
Her focus on keeping the Gators in tempo with a fast offense and building strong connections with hitters have all been picked up with time on the court alongside Murphy, a two-time All-American.
“I definitely look up to Kelly Murphy a lot,” Brown said. “We definitely feed off each other. We talk about things on the court, we’re always going back and forth with each other and her and I have a really great relationship with each other on and off the court.”
Recent improvements in Florida’s defense through a team-wide push for more digs and better passing have also aided the Gators’ setters, giving them room to be more efficient and creative.
In Florida’s last game against Mississippi State on Sunday, that meant Murphy could pull off both an impressive back set and a one-handed play.
“Anytime we can create a first contact that allows our setters options,” Wise said, “so not just to set one player but if they have options to set any one of three, maybe four players if we set Kristy in the back row, that makes us less one-dimensional.”
