Since beginning preparation for 2011, the Gators have had one broad goal: Peak in December.
It’s a goal that sounds simple, but one Florida has struggled with in recent years.
With three more games until the postseason begins, the No. 17 Gators (21-5, 14-3 Southeastern Conference) continue their countdown to December at home tonight at 7 against Georgia (11-16, 7-10 SEC).
“We just need to understand that we need to finish strong,” junior right-side Tangerine Wiggs said. “There’s no point in feeling sorry for ourselves and dwelling on some of the games that didn’t come out the way we wanted to.”
The games to which Wiggs refers: Florida’s three conference defeats — two against Tennessee and one to Kentucky. The Gators are in the midst of their second-worst SEC season since coach Mary Wise took the helm in 1991. Trailing both Kentucky and Tennessee in the conference standings, UF is on the verge of not winning the SEC title for just the second time in Wise’s tenure, with 2009 being the only other exception.
“It’s disappointing that that’s a goal we had, and we didn’t achieve it,” Wiggs said. “But it’s something that we learn from. We really watch tape and understand what we didn’t do well in those games, what we need to do better in the future.”
While UF players or coaches aren’t calling these final three regular-season games a tune-up, it is a stretch against three teams that have a combined 14-37 record in conference play. Florida swept Georgia, Auburn and South Carolina within a three-week span following a loss to Tennessee in late September.
“We’re definitely taking these three games very seriously in that we need these three games to build our confidence and to make things click, so we’re playing our best volleyball in December,” Wiggs said.
Wise and Wiggs agreed that this team has done a solid job of moving past some SEC frustrations and seeing the bigger picture. For five straight seasons, Florida has failed to make it past the NCAA Regional Semifinals despite strong regular seasons. But now, the Gators are hoping three more opportunities to get better will help their chances in December.
“What the team has done a great job of is buying into that every day you have an opportunity to improve,” Wise said. “Every day, every contact is a chance to improve, and they’ve embraced that.”
