With a match against No. 3 Texas looming the day after playing No. 11 Oregon, Mary Wise didn’t want to look past the Ducks.
“It would be literally a tragedy to look past the No. 11ranked team in the country,” Wise said a few days before playing Oregon. “That would be the highlight on about 99 percent of the schools in the country’s schedule.”
Wise’s mindset worked.
The No. 4 Gators swept the No. 11 Ducks 3-0 (25-18, 25-19, 25-20) and improved to a flawless 3-0 on the season Friday in Austin, Texas, as part of the 2015 VERT Challenge.
Senior setter Mackenzie Dagostino helped orchestrate the win, recording 46 assists in the win and setting up a big day for Florida’s hitters.
“It might’ve been Mackenzie Dagostino’s finest setting performance,” Wise said. “She’s the quarterback with the great arm. If you just give, in our case, her some protection she’s going to deliver.”
Dagostino delivered, resulting in four of UF’s players tallying double-digit kills - Ziva Recek and Rhamat Alhassan with 11 each, Alex Holston with 10, and Simone Antwi with 13.
Antwi, the senior middle blocker, put down her 13 kills in just 15 total attacks, good for an .867 hitting percentage.
Senior defensive specialist Nikki O’Rourke covered the court all game long, earning a game-high 19 digs.
The Gators return to the court Saturday to square off against No. 3 Texas. Last year, UF split both games against the Longhorns but downed them in Texas.
Texas, who has eight players listed at 6-foot-2 or taller, is a bigger team than Florida has seen this year. The Gators have just four players listed at 6-foot-2 or taller.
“You’re gonna see a lot of big hitters, like high hitters,” sophomore outside hitter Carli Snyder said. “They’re gonna play really high level volleyball all the time and put constant pressure on us.”
Follow Patrick Pinak on Twitter @Pinakk12
Mackenzie Dagostino (6) and Rhamat Alhassan (1) attempt to block a kill attempt during No. 8 seed Florida's 3-1 win against Miami in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday in the O'Connell Center.
