Kentucky at Florida

[GatorVball]

Gators sweep, 30-22, 30-24, 30-27. Kentucky played pretty well, much better than any UK team I've ever seen. I think Skinner has them headed in the right direction. I can see how they swept UGA in Athens on Friday. But I can also see how they lost to Auburn, they tend to lose focus for certain stretches that just end up costing them. Fisher, Wallace and Kaplan all had very good matches, as did Casper. They matched Florida block for block, kill for kill and dig for dig, some very nice long rallies.

For Florida, Amber had the best match of her career, 15 kills, hit over .600, 4 blocks. Kisya also had a very good match, as did McGinnis. Jane was pretty much shut down as UK made sure she wasn't gonna beat them. That really opened up the right side for Amber who was unstoppable. Marcie had her typical match. Engel, I thought, played as well as I've seen her, 23 digs today, nothing dropped in front of her. Seems like each match, someone new steps up and that's what I like about this team. You can't just focus on stopping one or two players, cause Florida has others who can and will beat you, if you do. Nice to have that balance and confidence in everyone on the floor.

[Alberta]

I thought Amber had an awesome match. I wish she would have had this match against Georgia, that would have been fun for her.
Marcie was very steady, as usual, 10 kills and 9 digs, almost another double-double.
It looks like Kari has the M2 position wrapped up for the season unless something drastic happens. Even when she messed up and came out and Kelsey went in, it wasn't for very long. I am very impressed with her...she is turning into quite a utility player like Michelle Chatman.
Gator is right, you can shut down one or two of Florida's players but there is another one that can step up and score. It looks as if Kentucky prepared for Jane and Kisya but forgot about Amber.
Anyway, I'm glad the volleyball team won after the sorry showing the football team had against Alabama on Saturday.

[GatorVball]

What I really like about the offense, other than the balance, is the way Mary is using the players and having them hit from all parts of the court. How neat was it to see Kisya on the outside, skying up for a kill on a designed play. They run Amber out of the left and middle, as well as the right. That X play from the middle is deadly and everytime they run it, she slams it down. Same for Jane. Just cause they play a certain position, doesn't mean they always have to hit from their designated spot. I love that and it really keeps the other team off balance.

I look forward to the match on Friday. It's another test for the young Gator middles, going up against the experience of Tennessee. Should be a fun one to watch. I expect UT to play their best match of the season, so Florida will have to be ready.