Chloe Mann and Holly Pole are different players.
Standing 6-foot-1, Mann has become a dominant middle blocker for Florida, playing as high above the net as any Gators middle has in years, according to UF coach Mary Wise.
At 5-foot-8, Pole is a cheerful defensive specialist who has recently earned extended playing time due to her performance in practice.
But past the obvious contrasts, the two are similar.
“Chloe and I are definitely really close,” Pole said. “We played together (on club team) Gainesville Juniors. We played against each other in high school. It’s definitely cool that we both get to start because we have a lot of the same friends that come to the games.”
Mann and Pole grew up in Gainesville and Ocala, respectively. They briefly played club volleyball with one another. For both, volleyball was just part of a two-sport regimen in high school.
Mann got started with volleyball when she was looking for a sport to play outside of tennis season. For Pole, volleyball was a fall sport to supplement her Vanguard High basketball team, which she led to the 2010 FHSAA Final Four.
“When you have good athletes, they get those volleyball skills, they get the experience and then you get them playing at their best,” Wise said. “We felt that both had a high ceiling, and we’re seeing them move in that direction now.”
Recently, the two have improved enough to gain starting spots and extended playing time.
For the past three games, Mann, a sophomore, has started in place of senior Cassandra Anderson. On Sunday against Ole Miss, Pole, a freshman, got her first career start and responded by recording seven digs and helping turn around the Gators’ passing game.
“(It’s) not so much experimental as much as both Holly and Chloe have been playing well,” Wise said. “I wanted to give them a chance.”
The moves meant Anderson and freshman defensive specialist Madison Monserez sat out during the weekend for the first time all season.
“If we struggled, I wouldn’t have hesitated to put either of those two — Maddy or Cassandra, who have more playing experience — in those positions,” Wise said.
However, the two locals have not struggled. Mann led the team in points with 20, picking up eight kills and six blocks in Sunday’s game.
“It’s nice to play in front of a lot of people that we know and see some familiar faces out there in the crowd,” Mann said. “It’s definitely nice.”
Florida sophomore defensive specialist Holly Pole celebrates during a match in 2011.
