When No. 15 Kentucky travels to Gainesville on Friday, it will have more than a chance to beat a rival.
It will have a chance to end the Gators’ streak of seven consecutive sweeps.
No. 2 Florida will face UK its second Southeastern Conference home match on Friday and will square off against Georgia on Sunday.
Kentucky will be only the second currently ranked opponent Florida has played at home this season — the other being No. 21 Florida State.
The Gators will be tasked with stopping Kentucky outside hitter Whitney Billings.
Billings is coming off a season during which she was named to the AVCA All-America Second Team. She currently ranks 76th in the nation in kills per set at 3.7 – 21 spots higher than any Gator on the list.
Georgia is no small challenge.
The Bulldogs are one of the most improved teams in the nation this year. The team already has 13 wins on the season after finishing last year with 14.
“We knew this would be the case,” coach Mary Wise said. “When Georgia made the coaching change, we knew they would continue to bring great talent.
“Look at their record and their RPI. This is where Georgia is, right there in terms of being an NCAA tournament team, which is great for our league.”
Follow RJ Schaffer on Twitter @rjschaffer.
Ziva Recek reaches for the ball during Florida’s four-set victory against Western Michigan on Sept. 14 in the O’Connell Center.
