As part of the Alligator Awards recognizing the best in UF athletics during the 2013-14 season, staff writers Jordan McPherson and Eden Otero will debate two of the five nominees for best female athlete. Check out the rest of the nominees in the photos (left).
Eden: During the 2013-2014 season, we saw a lot of female athletes do incredible things, but Kytra Hunter was the best.
Hunter quite possibly had the best season of her entire gymnastics career in 2014.
She completed the year with six perfect scores — two on vault and four on floor — and helped the team repeat for a second straight national title.
Her performance this season made her the strongest athlete for Florida, and that’s saying something considering the team boasts two Olympians — Bridget Sloan and Alaina Johnson — and two sisters who were dubbed to go to the Olympics — Mackenzie Caquatto and Bridgette Caquatto. And by the way, Bridgette Caquatto went to the Pan-American Games and won on a shattered kneecap, so that’s saying a lot.
It’s not easy to stand out in a crowd that is as talented as this one.
But Hunter set herself apart from the rest of the pack with perfection throughout the 2014 season.
Jordan: Hunter had a great year, but are you sure she was the best on her team?
Sloan paced the team in all-around scores in nine of its 14 events, forcing Hunter to play second-fiddle to the sophomore Olympian.
The Alligator Award without a doubt deserves to go to volleyball’s Chloe Mann.
The senior middle blocker led the country with a .506 hitting percentage and led the Gators with 369 kills while committing just 47 errors.
Do you remember the last time a UF player notched a hitting percentage above .500 in a season? It hasn’t happened.
In fact, the only other time a player managed a hitting clip that high in a year with the current scoring format was when Penn State’s Arielle Wilson notched a .540 mark back in 2009.
Mann’s outstanding final year at UF gave her a .476 career hitting percentage — the best in NCAA history.
Mann carried her team on her back. Hunter had help.
Eden: Hunter may have had some help, but that’s what a team needs to win a national championship.
Do you see a title ring on Mann’s finger right now? Because I don’t.
If Mann was really the best female athlete, she would have been able to help lead her team past the second round of the NCAA Finals in 2013.
I know it seems low to fault her for not having teammates to help her bring home a title, but that is key in being a strong athlete — to be able to inspire and push your teammates.
Hunter has become a leader alongside Sloan because she can see that in order to win, she’s going to need help.
Jordan: If this rally was for the best team, then clearly you have me beat. But it’s not.
This Alligator Award is about the best female ATHLETE — a single competitor.
And no one who played a sport on UF’s campus this season was as much of a competitor as Mann.
Let’s face it, Mann was the focal point of Florida volleyball’s offense last season. She led or tied for the team lead in kills on 14 occasions in 2013 and had double-digit kill mark in 22 of UF’s 32 matches.
Her contributions on defense were noted as well, finishing second on the team with 91 total blocks compared to just 13 blocking errors.
I’m not discrediting what Hunter has accomplished, but if you removed her from the lineup, Rhonda Faehn’s squad still would have found success.
If Mann wasn’t on the team, Florida volleyball would have gone nowhere.
Eden: Are you really saying that Mann is the LeBron James of the volleyball team?
Because that’s a bit of an exaggeration.
Don’t get me wrong. Mann had a hell of a season, but so did Hunter.
I disagree that Faehn would have been able to replace her.
The only other gymnast for Florida that ever proved to be as good as Hunter (and could adequately replace her because let’s be real here, she WON the floor exercise 11 of 13 times this season and six of those were consecutive) on the floor was Bridget Sloan.
And you can’t replace Hunter with someone that is already competing in the event.
Not to mention, if they lost Hunter then they would lose one of their best all-around competitors.
I will also point out that many of the secondaries on Faehn’s roster were suffering from some sort of injury.
Lauren Rose, someone who could replace Hunter on the vault has had serious issues with her achilles tendon for the last three years.
Rachel Spicer, despite being really good on the floor, would not be able to make up for what the Gators would lose if Hunter wasn’t performing.
And Jamie Shisler hasn’t shown a consistent performance in the last year.
Mark my words, Hunter is going to be talked about for seasons to come when she graduates because that’s what happens when you break records left and right in a single season.
Follow Jordan McPherson on Twitter @J_McPherson1126
Follow Eden Otero on Twitter @edenotero_l
Kytra Hunter performs a floor routine during Florida’s 198.125-197.625 win against LSU on Feb. 21 in the O’Connell Center. Hunter landed six perfect scores (four on floor and two on vault) during the 2014 season.
Redshirt senior middle blocker Chloe Mann swings during the Gators' 3-0 loss to the Tigers on Nov. 15, 2013, in the O'Connell Center. Mann paced the Gators with a .506 hitting percentage in 2013 en route to becoming the NCAA career hitting percentage leader with her .476 clip.
Shannon Gilroy looks to shoot the ball during Florida’s 18-7 win against High Point on Feb. 15 at Donald R. Dizney Stadium. Gilroy was named the Midfielder of the Year by womenslax.com after setting UF records in goals (86) and points (106).
Hannah Rogers pitches during UF's 17-1 win against USF on April 23 at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium. Rogers was named the 2014 Southeastern Conference Female Athlete of the Year and finished her senior season with a 30-8 record and a 1.60 ERA.
Kelsey Stewart bats during Florida's 7-6 win against Auburn on April 5 at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium. Stewart finished her sophomore season with a team-best .438 batting average while setting UF's single-season record for hits (102) and tying her record for stolen bases (36).
