When Florida takes the court in Cedar Falls, Iowa, tonight at 6, it will be staring across the net at a team that embodies nearly everything it is not.
Missouri is an unfamiliar opponent in both history and stature. Florida has never in its 27-year history played the school it will call a Southeastern Conference foe next season.
“We haven’t played Missouri since we’ve been here, so I couldn’t even tell you what happened 20 years ago,” UF coach Mary Wise said after seeing her team’s first-round draw on Sunday night.
Florida’s postseason attack is one based almost entirely on experience and desperation.
The Gators (24-5, 17-3 SEC) have five seniors who have ended every year of their collegiate careers in the NCAA Regional Semifinals.
In the Tigers, they will find one of the tournament’s youngest teams, a squad that regularly starts three freshmen and two sophomores in addition to just one senior.
“Those girls are playing for each other,” junior right-side hitter Tangerine Wiggs said. “There’s not really that pressure and there’s not really that weight of thinking this could be our last game. That’s scary.”
Expecting the Tigers (21-12, 7-9 Big 12 Conference) to play with nothing to lose, the Gators have put extra emphasis on defense and controlling runs off the serve. Both are areas that have been major focuses all year for Florida, and both are areas where it feels it has peaked.
“We’ve really been working on things throughout the year that aren’t necessarily our strengths that they might expose,” Wiggs said.
Missouri’s lone starting senior, Brittney Brimmage, is a 6-foot-3 middle blocker and outside hitter who has been a rock both offensively and defensively for the Tigers all season. Without missing a single set and having her rotations split up by playing two different positions, Brimmage leads the team in hitting efficiency (.358) and is second in blocks.
But her success in her final game will rely primarily on underclassmen.
Missouri’s offense has been plagued by unforced errors throughout the season. Brimmage is the only regular contributor hitting above .279.
The Tigers’ defense is somewhat similar to that of the Gators’ in that it relies heavily on blocking in lieu of libero play. Missouri averages 2.3 blocks per set, a total comparable to Florida’s 2.4 mark — a stat the Gators are not often matched in.
In the backcourt, the Tigers are a mixed batch that has seen six players record at least 136 digs on the season.
“We’re really focusing on Mizzou right now and just really putting our heart and our minds into that and hoping for the best,” UF sophomore setter Chanel Brown said.
While the Tigers appear to have little pressure on them, the Gators will be trying to feed off the must-win scenario.
During the practices leading up to tonight’s game, Wiggs has seen a renewed intensity in her seniors.
“They’ve been working really hard in practice this week,” she said. “You can see that type of grit that they have and that fight that they have. It’s going to be exciting to see them play.”
Florida junior right-side hitter Tangerine Wiggs (left) and the Gators travel to Cedar Falls, Iowa, tonight to take on a youthful Missouri team in the opening round of the NCAA Championship.
