In the middle of the third set in Friday night’s matchup against Jacksonville, the Gators were having a difficult time pulling away from the Dolphins.
Poorly struck balls and mistimed jumps were plaguing a Florida team that was trying to sweep its second opponent of the day.
Then Carli Snyder stepped up.
The junior outside hitter took a perfectly set ball from two-time Southeastern Conference Setter of the Week Allie Monserez and drilled it for a kill.
And there was nothing Jacksonville could do, as No. 7 Florida (9-1) defeated Jacksonville (3-8) on Friday night in straight sets. The Gators also swept Florida A&M (2-10) in Florida’s first home match of the season in the Lemerand Athletic Center.
And Florida can thank Snyder for that.
Snyder demonstrated every bit of why she was named an All-American last season, slamming down a team-high 15 kills against the Dolphins.
“She was born with that whip of an arm,” UF coach Mary Wise said. “Now she’s jumping higher. She’s stronger. … That arm comes through really, really fast.”
Snyder wasn’t alone, though, as Florida’s other point scorers feasted on a FAMU and Jacksonville team that had no answer for the Gators’ attack.
Alex Holston was the leader against the Rattlers, registering a team-high 12 kills and 14 points in the match.
Against the Dolphins, Holston and middle blocker Rhamat Alhassan teamed up for a combined 20 kills and 23.5 points.
But, according to junior libero Caroline Knop, who tallied a combined 23 digs on Friday, there is still a lot the team can improve on.
“We’re just scratching the surface,” Knop said.
That includes freshman Rachael Kramer, who had one of her best matches of the season against FAMU, slamming down eight kills and scoring 10 points in the win.
Against Jacksonville, it was more of the same, as the 6-foot-8 middle blocker chipped in five kills, three blocks and recorded a team-high .556 hitting percentage.
Freshman Morgyn Greer was also solid, as the outside hitter tallied 10 kills between the two matches.
“That is a group of freshmen who do not play like freshmen,” Snyder said. “They did such a good job of handling the home atmosphere. Never tried to do too many things.
“Everybody did their part.”
Today, Florida will look for a repeat performance as the Gators face Marshall (11-3) at 4 p.m. in the last match of the Active Ankle Challenge.
The Thundering Herd defeated FAMU and Jacksonville in straight sets on Friday.
“One of the things were going to have to do is be really good defensively,” Wise said. “It’ll be a great match to be playing on a Saturday.”
Contact Ray Boone at rboone@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @rboone1994.
UF outside hitter Carli Snyder slams down a kill attempt during Florida's 3-0 win against Jacksonville on Sept. 16, 2016, inside the Lemerand Athletic Center.
