The Gators are one win away from the Final Four.
Florida overcame its most grueling weekend of the year, defeating California and No. 3-seed Texas Tech to advance to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament in two physically and emotionally draining matches.
The team now has a week to recuperate before facing No. 1-seed Stanford on Friday night, and coach Becky Burleigh said the rest will be essential for the players this week.
"We have to make sure we take care of our bodies," she said.
"But I think part of that too is you’re being able to mentally refresh too — I mean, that was an intense weekend."
This is the furthest Florida has advanced in the NCAA Tournament since making the Elite Eight in 2003, losing 2-1 at home to Florida State.
The last time the Gators made the Final Four was 2001, when they lost 3-2 in overtime to Santa Clara.
But Burleigh isn’t focused on how big the win would be for the program.
She’s just focused on getting the team to improve every day.
"I don’t really look at this as the magnitude of such a big game," Burleigh said. "I think it’s part of this team’s journey as far as looking back at Sunday’s game, Friday’s game, last Sunday’s game, and seeing where we can continue to get better.
"And I think when you start looking at it as a really big game is probably when you put yourself under more pressure than you need to."
Putting extra pressure on themselves is the last thing the Gators need to do leading into Friday’s game — the Cardinal will be looking to give them all the pressure the team can handle and more.
Florida and Stanford faced off once already this season on Sept. 12, when the Cardinal shut out Florida’s offense in a 1-0 overtime loss in Palo Alto, California.
Stanford has only one loss this season, which came at the hands of No. 1 seed UCLA on the road, but Burleigh said the Gators have improved since the teams last met in September.
"I can’t really speak for Stanford, but I know for us, we have grown so much since the last time we played," Burleigh said.
"It was a long time ago, and we’ve had so many experiences since then, and I think a lot of those experiences are what have prepared to get to this point."
Burleigh said making the trip to Palo Alto earlier in the season will make it easier to play there the second time around.
The winner of Friday night’s contest will advance and play in Boca Raton for the Final Four on Dec. 5.
And, of course, the loser will go home.
Follow Graham Hack on Twitter @Graham_Hack24
Christen Westphal kicks the ball during Florida's 3-2 win against Texas Tech during the third round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday at Donald R. Dizney Stadium.
