Florida avenges earlier loss with sweep against South Carolina

October 20th, 2006

Junior opposite hitter Amber McCray recorded a team-high 12 kills on .450 hitting as the #7 University of Florida volleyball team swept South Carolina (30-27, 30-27, 30-28) before a crowd of 2,005 fans on Friday evening at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center.

Florida (17-2 overall, 10-1 SEC) remained in first place in the conference standings with the victory in moving to 16-0 against the Gamecocks (11-11, 4-7) at home in the Mary Wise era. The Gators won 17 of their first 19 matches on the year for the sixth consecutive season and extended their winning streak to nine straight matches. The Gators out-hit South Carolina .225-.137 and finished with more kills (54-37) and digs (46-39).

“I didn’t think South Carolina was a team we were going to blow out and we made some uncharacteristic unforced errors and were lucky to win in three,” Florida coach Mary Wise said. “You have some nights when you’re not firing on all cylinders and if you can grind out a win – that’s great. We were fortunate to have Amber McCray and South Carolina had a tough time defending her.”

Florida held South Carolina’s Shonda Cole – #2 in the nation in kills per game – to just 14 kills on .132 hitting – her third-worst performances of the year in both categories.

Freshman libero Elyse Cusack recorded a match-high 18 digs for the Gators, while junior Kisya Killingsworth helped lead a balanced Gator attack in which five players recorded eight kills or more as she chimed in with 10. Sophomore middle blocker Kelsey Bowers picked up nine kills on .467 hitting, while junior outside hitter Marcie Hampton collected nine kills and eight digs. Junior setter Angie McGinnis was near a triple-double with 41 assists, nine digs and six kills.

Florida returns to action on Sunday when the Gators face Georgia in a 1:30 p.m. Sun Sports televised match at the O’Connell Center. The first 1,000 fans will receive a free t-shirt. The contest will also air on WRUF-AM 850 and www.GatorZone.com.