To close out its regular season, Florida snapped a three-match losing streak and continued one of the program’s longest winning stretches. UF has not lost a match against the Rebels since 1989 and refused to do so Friday.
The Gators (14-10 and 9-6 SEC) topped Ole Miss (12-14, 4-11 SEC) in four sets Friday afternoon on the road. Florida faltered in set two after a dominant start, but regained momentum to take wins in the final two sets.
UF was in complete control in set one, only recording two attacking errors, siding out at over 80% and boasting a .357 hitting clip. The Gators got off to a 7-3 start and led by as many as eight points before clinching a 25-20 win.
However, as they often have in set two this season, the Gators dominance wavered and bad habits crept back in. In its 25-19 set two loss, UF committed eight attacking errors and hit .130. While both teams had a tough set one from behind the line, committing a combined nine service errors, only Florida continued to struggle. The Gators recorded three service errors in set two while Ole Miss stayed perfect from behind the line
While each team took a set to work through their respective struggles, they were evenly matched in the final two sets. They traded runs and tied 13 times in set four before the Gators came up with the win.
The Gators struggled with consistency in their serving, but managed to ace the Rebels nine times throughout the match. With Florida’s defensive effort, it got aced only once and sided out at 66.3%. Leading that charge was freshman libero Lily Hayes who recorded 14 digs in the match. She was followed by senior defensive specialist Emily Canaan who had nine.
Offensively, each team had three attackers reach double-digit kills. For the Gators, redshirt sophomore outsides Aniya Madkin and Jordyn Byrd each charted 11. Sophomore middle Jaela Auguste had 10 kills and four blocks, tying the team high blocks with middle Alec Rothe. Rothe had a strong performance as well, just missing double digits with nine kills and only one error. Her and Auguste were Florida’s most consistent attackers in the match.
UF’s attackers were met with three major offensive forces on the other side of the net. Freshman outside Melia Johnson led the match with 16 kills and posed the most problems for Florida. Behind her, junior outside Shayla Meyer recorded her fourth career double-double with 14 kills and 11 digs. Junior outside Gabi Placide, who places second in the SEC in points and third in kills, logged 13 kills.
The Gators await their seeding for the SEC Tournament to decide their next match. They may play as early as Friday, but are likely to start their run Nov. 22.
Contact Ava DiCecca at adicecca@alligator.org. Follow her on X @avadicecca24.
Ava is a sophomore sports journalism student and the volleyball beat reporter for fall 2025. She enjoys playing basketball and volleyball in her free time and going on beach trips with friends. She has been a Boston sports fan all her life (Brad Marchand we miss you).
