The Gators brought out the brooms in their Southeastern Conference opener, much like they did to begin the regular season.
On Friday night, No. 7 Florida (8-2, 1-0 SEC) defeated Mississippi State (5-5, 0-1 SEC) 3-0 (25-20, 25-18, 26-24) in Starkville, Miss.
However, just as it was with 3-0 early season victory against Florida State, the match was much closer than the final score indicated.
In the first set, the Bulldogs led the Gators 19-18 before the Gators rattled off a 7-1 run to finish the set, powered by junior right-side hitter Tangerine Wiggs.
Wiggs recorded two kills and teamed up with senior middle blocker Betsy Smith on a stuff block that gave UF a 22-19 advantage, its largest lead of the set.
In the second set, Mississippi State pulled within two points of the lead at 16-14 before Florida rattled off four straight points on their way to a 25-18 win.
The third set proved to be the match’s most dramatic, going back-and-forth to the end.
After falling behind 12-8, the Bulldogs went on a 7-1 run to retake the lead 15-13. But Wiggs would step up with another clutch kill to bring the Gators within one point, setting off the hotly-contested final stretch.
Both sides battled through four ties and four lead changes, before setter Kelly Murphy put an end to the hoopla, recording back-to-back kills for a 26-24 match-clinching set victory.
The senior delivering the knockout blow to Mississippi State was fitting, especially considering the night she had.
Murphy recorded her 25th career triple-double (10 kills, 19 assists, 11 digs) against the Bulldogs, including team-best marks in assists (19; tied with sophomore setter Chanel Brown) and hitting percentage (.500).
Wiggs continued her offensive hot streak with 11 kills and a .375 hitting percentage while senior outside hitter Kristy Jaeckel led the squad with 14 kills.
Florida ends its road trip and continues their SEC schedule in a home tilt against Kentucky Sept. 23 at the O’Connell Center.
