Becoming an elite team requires the mental resolve to maintain intensity against every opponent, even when playing teams at the bottom of the conference.
The Gators volleyball team did just that on Sunday as No. 12 Florida swept Georgia, 25-12, 25-12, 25-19, to give UF its fourth consecutive sweep and eighth straight win.
Senior outside hitter Ziva Recek led all players with 12 kills, setter Mackenzie Dagostino had her sixth double-double of the season by compiling 25 assists with 10 digs and the Gators (17-4, 9-3 Southeastern Conference) held the Bulldogs to a lowly -.031 hitting clip in a match that only took a little more than an hour to complete.
Florida got off to a fast start and didn’t look back, never trailing in the first set that it won handily, 25-12.
Georgia didn’t go down without a fight, beginning the second set on a 4-1 run.
However, the Gators responded with a small run of their own to pull even at 5-5.
With Florida leading 8-6, sophomore setter Abby Detering began a 14 point-serving run to blow the match open.
Prior to this, the team’s longest point serving run was nine by junior Alex Holston.
The streak propelled a 17-1 run and gave the Gators an insurmountable 22-6 lead on their way to another 25-12 set victory.
Once again, the Gators got off to a fast start in the third set, building a 6-1 lead and cruising to a 25-19 win to secure the sweep.
Clearly the better team, Florida dominated both on offense and defense throughout the match.
The Gators put up a solid .352 hitting clip and had more than double the amount of Georgia’s kills, 42-19.
The team’s offensive efficiency was impressive as well.
Sophomore middle blocker Rhamat Alhassan hit .667 while compiling eight kills with no errors.
Carli Snyder added six kills on a .500 hitting percentage and was also error-free.
More impressive than Florida’s offense, however, was the stellar play of its defense.
Georgia’s -.031 hitting clip was the second lowest team hitting percentage the Gators have allowed all season.
San Diego State hit just -.040 against the Gators on Sept. 12 in a 3-0 win.
The Bulldogs’ 19 kills also marked a season-low for a Florida opponent.
"The hitting numbers today will be what people may focus on," coach Mary Wise said in a release, "but we are even more pleased with the defensive effort and holding an SEC team to such low numbers."
The victory on Sunday was the Gators’ 12th sweep of the season, capping off a weekend in which Florida also beat South Carolina and took care of business against the cellar dwellers of the conference.
With the loss, Georgia’s record dropped to 5-17 overall and 0-10 in the SEC, as the Bulldogs remained in last place in the conference.
With the win, Florida improved its record to 25-4 all-time against the Bulldogs in Athens.
The Gators next return home to face Mississippi State this Friday at 4 p.m. on the SEC Network+.
Follow Brian Lee on Twitter @brianlee_17
UF outside hitter Ziva Recek (9) hits the ball over the net during Florida's 3-0 win against St. John's on Sept. 17, 2015, in the O'Connell Center.
