Mary Wise has had a track record of dominating the Southeastern Conference.
In her 25 years as head coach of the Florida volleyball team, she had never lost three straight SEC matches.
That is, until the No. 17 Gators suffered another crushing five-set loss to Arkansas Sunday, plummeting Florida (9-4, 1-3 SEC) down the conference standings.
Wise, who led UF to nine straight undefeated SEC titles from 1995-2003, only lost two SEC matches in all of the 1990s.
Now she’s lost three in the span of eight days.
Part of the reason for the losing streak is the strength of the SEC now, Wise said.
"There used to be a day where you could win in the league without bringing your A-game," Wise said. "Those days are long gone."
Florida is now 0-3 in five-set matches after losses to Arkansas and Missouri.
Despite that record, Wise said she is proud of the way her team has played.
"To be in two five-setters speaks really well to the grit of our team," she said.
"I know we’re judged by the final score and that’s athletics, but what’s going into it is a whole lot of heart."
The bottom line remains that the Gators have had trouble closing out games recently.
On Wednesday, Florida led Missouri 2-0 before dropping three straight sets.
Yet on Sunday, even when the Gators played statistically better than their opponent, they couldn’t leave Fayetteville with a win.
UF hit .252 with 65 kills and 12 blocks, while Arkansas hit just .144 with 54 kills and 10.5 blocks.
"If it had been a boxing match, we would’ve won by decision," Wise said. "Arkansas won the big points when it mattered."
Wise knows it’s up to her to play the players who’ll make the clutch plays.
"We gotta find a combination of players who can, for the serving-passing game, make plays at crunch time," she said, "not just in the beginning of sets."
Finding that combination will be tougher now too, because senior setter Mackenzie Dagostino is "highly doubtful" to play this weekend with a concussion, according to Wise.
Dagostino’s concussion is the most recent of reasons to hinder Florida’s lineup this season.
Sophomore outside hitter Carli Snyder suffered an ankle injury in early September and senior outside hitter Ziva Recek missed three games while playing for Slovenia’s national team in Europe.
"Once again just when we got everyone back, we’re faced with another challenge," Wise said.
"But our main goal is still in front of us. Our main goal has always been, has not changed, is to play our best volleyball in December."
The losing streak also hasn’t had too much of an impact on Wise, who started Monday’s press conference with a simple phrase: "The good news is the sun did come up.”
Follow Patrick Pinak on Twitter @Pinakk12
UF coach Mary Wise calls out to setter Mackenzie Dagostino during Florida's 3-1 loss to Kentucky on Sept. 27, 2015, in the O'Connell Center.
