Late in the fourth set, the No. 11 Florida Gators had a commanding 19-10 lead.
Redshirt senior outside hitter Isabel Martin sent a serve over the net, and after a Colorado State return, it ended up in the hands of freshman setter Taylor Parks.
Like she had done almost all match long, Parks set up sophomore outside hitter Kennedy Martin near the net, and she smashed the ball down on the court for a massive kill.
And the next play, they did it again. Parks to Kennedy Martin, kill for Florida.
From there, it was all Florida (1-0), despite opening the season on the road the Gators were more than up to the challenge, defeating Colorado State (0-1) 3-1.
Sophomore outside hitter Kennedy Martin led the way for the Gators, recording 25 of Florida’s 53 kills in the bout. Behind her was redshirt senior outside hitter Isabel Martin, who racked up 11 kills in her Gator debut.
Florida led the match in nearly every statistical category, including kills, aces, digs, and blocks.
With the season now underway in 2024, there was plenty of rust on both sides. The Gators recorded 32 total errors to Colorado State’s 34.
Florida featured plenty of familiar faces, but was missing one notable player: redshirt sophomore setter Alexis Stucky.
The Preseason All-SEC pick is still rehabbing from her season-ending knee injury suffered last season. She is expected to return in September.
Freshman setter Taylor Parks filled the void for Stucky, garnering a match-high 44 assists.
Meanwhile, freshman outside hitter Lauren Harden and freshmen middle blockers Jaela Auguste and Alec Rothe both rotated into the lineup, with Rothe making her first career start for the Gators.
Florida’s libero duo of fifth-year Elli McKissock and junior Emily Canaan were effective throughout, recording 10 and nine digs, respectively.
The first set perhaps surprised the Gators, falling behind 10-6 in the early going. However, Florida recovered behind three serve aces, eventually pulling ahead to win the set 25-21. In the first set, Kennedy Martin racked up six kills, while Isabel Martin grabbed five kills.
The Martin show continued into the later sets of the match, where they pioneered the Gators to another 25-21 second set win. Kennedy Martin recorded eight kills, including the set-winning kill in the frame.
The third set was a back-and-forth affair, featuring seven lead changes between Colorado State and Florida.
Through multiple points, the Gators were on the brink of clinching a sweep, even reaching a match point. However, three consecutive Florida errors helped spring the Rams to a 5-0 run en route to a 26-24 third set victory.
UF started the fourth and final set strong, scoring the frame’s first five points. The Gators never surrendered the lead for the remainder of the match, winning 25-11 to capture the win.
Next, Florida will take on Northern Colorado (1-0) on Aug. 31st in Greeley, Colorado, before heading back to Fort Collins to face Michigan State (0-1) on Sept. 1.
Contact Max Bernstein at mbernstein@alligator.org. Follow him on X @maxbernstein23.
