UK faces Florida in top-15 showdown

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By T.J. Walker

Ask anyone on the UK volleyball team about their match at No. 5 Florida, they’ll smile and say it’s just another game standing in the way of their goal. However, in a game featuring two top-15 teams, this game will be telling on who has the upper hand in the Southeastern Conference.

Florida (10-1, 4-0 SEC) has been the poster child of the SEC. They have owned the SEC title since 1991, and if No. 15 UK (13-1, 3-0 SEC) wants a conference championship, a win at Florida would be a step in the right direction.

Junior outside hitter Sarah Mendoza, a Florida native, and the rest of the Cats will travel down to Florida for a showdown with the 18-time defending SEC Champions. Photo by Britney McIntosh | Staff

“Florida is a great team, has great athletes, highly ranked recruiting class over the last couple years, they’re a team that has performed well and won consecutive conference championships as we all know,” UK head coach Craig Skinner said. “We know they’re personal; they have basically everyone back from last year, minus one.”

UK spilt the season series last year with Florida, losing a five-set thriller on the road but flipping the script at home. UK could have definitely used that loss on the road; UK finished the season a game behind eventual SEC champs Florida.

“We played well for most of the match down there last year and now it’s about trying to start well and finish well,” Skinner said. “If we’re able to do that, then it helps us recognize what we’re doing in the gym is working and we are a step closer to getting where we want to go.”

UK is trying to not put emphasis on any one game, but take the season one game at a time.

“Our team motto is that we take it one game at a time and making sure that we’re preparing ourselves for every opponent that we face and not looking too far ahead,” said senior setter Sarah Rumely. “You can’t overplay versus an opponent like Florida, you have to play Kentucky volleyball in order to be successful against them.”

Senior libero BriAnne Sauer was named SEC Defensive Player of the Week over the weekend for her play in a winning effort against Mississippi and Arkansas. Sauer, however, thinks it will take a team effort to knock off the Gators.

“They’re ranked fifth in the nation, so it’s going to take everyone to be on their game to pull out a win,” Sauer said.

Even though UK hasn’t been able to dethrone Florida for the conference crown, they have made a name for themselves over the years. The Cats know they can no longer sneak up on teams. They plan on getting everyone’s best effort. Skinner has an idea on what they will have to do to beat Florida.

“We have to serve to be able to get them out of systems and get their setters on the run and we have to attack in all areas of the net so that they have a tough time game planning against us,” Skinner said. “Whether we kill the ball or whether they dig it, as long as we’re attacking the ball aggressively, going fast-break offense against them, then they are going to have a tough time setting all their options.”

UK feels confident and excited to play the Gators, yet they don’t look at Florida as a perennial power. They see Florida as just another team standing in the way of winning a conference championship.

“Any time you go down to Florida, it’s always an exciting match, but it’s the next game on our schedule,” Rumely said. “They’re the next team that stands in the way of what we’re trying to accomplish this season.”