The sight of Betsy Smith’s 6-foot-2 frame falling to the floor with a right ankle injury was not encouraging to coach Mary Wise. Smith, who injured her ankle during No. 13 Florida’s loss to No. 11 Florida State on Oct. 24, “some time away,” according to Wise.
In Smith's absence, fellow redshirt senior Tangerine Wiggs picked up the slack.
The right-side hitter broke a 10-year Florida hitting percentage record by hitting .929 in Florida’s win against Mississippi State on Friday. Benavia Jenkins previously held the record at .923, which she recorded against UCF in the NCAA Tournament on Dec. 6, 2002.
Wiggs recognized the need to step up during Smith's absence and plans to do so by staying the course on the court.
“I want to do everything I can to help our team win games,” Wiggs said. “I go in every day and I try my very best. With Betsy being down, I don’t miraculously have a new approach or a new mindset. I go in every game, regardless of who we’re playing, wanting to play my best and doing whatever it takes to help my team.”
Wise said she wasn’t even sure how effective Wiggs would be this season after an injury-plagued spring. However, Wiggs' determination to return from injury impressed the coach, who is confident in the Seattle native's ability to provide a veteran presence on the court.
“She’s gotten herself healthy, in great shape and is taking her game to another level,” Wise said. “She’s playing with a whole lot of confidence right now.”
Wiggs ranks second in the SEC with a .409 hitting percentage, just behind fellow Gator Chloe Mann who leads the league with a .440 clip this season.
With Smith sidelined indefinitely, Florida will rely on its depth to compensate for the absence of its team captain. UF (18-3, 12-0 Southeastern Conference) heads into the thick of its league schedule tonight against Georgia (13-9, 7-5 SEC) in the O'Connell Center.
“We wish we were healthier right now, but that’s just not the case,” she said. “The good news is we do have some depth and we’ll need it.”
