Any talk of the Gators dropping off has seemingly been quelled.
The rest of the Southeastern Conference needs to take notice.
Florida’s volleyball team ripped through Rocky Top on Wednesday night, defeating Tennessee in straight sets, 25-19, 25-11, 25-23.
Since losing three straight conference games a week-and-a-half ago, the No. 17 Gators (12-4, 4-3 SEC) have swept their last three contests.
The teams traded points in the early going as they were even at 16 apiece halfway through the first set.
But the Gators pulled away, going on a 9-3 run to ice the first set, steal momentum and take a 1-0 lead.
The Gators opened the second set on a 7-1 tear and never looked back, winning easily 25-11.
The third set played out much like the first, with the teams trading leads throughout the match. Florida again found a way to seal the deal when it mattered, skating past Tennessee 25-23 to complete the sweep.
The Gators continued their efficient hitting by posting a .347 percentage as a team. Florida hit more than .300 for its third consecutive game. In their last three games, the Gators are hitting an impressive .397.
Florida received forceful production from its middle blockers throughout the match.
Sophomore Rhamat Alhassan amassed a game-high 13 kills and four blocks on a .429 hitting clip, while senior Simone Antwi had eight kills.
Although the Gators offensive attack was steady all night, it was their defensive dominance that gave Tennessee fits.
Florida held the Volunteers to a dismal .095 hitting percentage, the fourth SEC team this season that it has held under a .200 hitting clip.
Florida also had 10 players record a dig. Senior libero Nikki O’Rourke racked up a game-high 14 for the match.
Up 2-0 on the road versus an SEC opponent has been a familiar place for the Gators this season.
They built a similar lead two weeks ago against Missouri, only to see the Tigers rally to beat them in five sets.
But this team is different from the one that collapsed against the Tigers.
It has learned from that painful experience to never let up its intensity.
So when the Volunteers came out strong in the final set, the Gators didn’t panic.
Trailing by four points at the end of the third set, it would have been easy to let up and fall back on the guarantee of still leading heading into a fourth set.
Instead, Florida downed Tennessee with another 7-1 run and left Knoxville with a hard-earned conference victory.
"Lots of good really good things both from an offensive standpoint and a defensive standpoint," coach Mary Wise said in a release.
"To win 3-0 on the road in this league is a testament to our play tonight."
Florida will look to continue its SEC winning streak when the Gators hit the road on Sunday to take on the Kentucky Wildcats at 1 p.m. on SEC Network in Lexington, Kentucky.
Follow Brian Lee on Twitter @brianlee_17
UF middle blocker Rhamat Alhassan swings for a kill during Florida's 3-0 win against Texas A&M on Oct. 9, 2015, in the O'Connell Center.
