A home opener sets the tone for a season. On Sunday, Florida volleyball matched up against Norfolk State in front of its home crowd.
The Gators (2-1) defeated the Spartans (0-4), giving head coach Ryan Theis’ his first victory at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center.
“I think some things are starting to click more and more,” Theis said. “They’re a fun group. There’s a whole lot of personality out there, and I just try and stay out of the way.”
Norfolk came out of the gate strong, taking an early 3-1 lead. However, redshirt sophomore outside Jordyn Byrd led the Gators’ charge, keeping them in the game with her kills accounting for three of their first four points. She continued her dominance as the game progressed, racking up 12 kills.
Bryd was UF’s stronghold in set one as Florida snuck by the Spartans 25-18. The second set was more convincing as the Gators opened with a 9-2 run. They also saw setters Alexis Stucky and Taylor Parks share the floor for a rotation, giving Stucky the chance to showcase her abilities as a hitter while Parks held down the position.
Stucky added three kills and tied the team in high blocks and service aces with two to complement her 34 assists on the game. Her third kill brought the game to 15-7 in set three and forced a Norfolk timeout, a deficit the Spartans never recovered from as Florida took the set 25-12.
UF sophomore middles Alec Rothe and Jaela Auguste followed closely behind Byrd, logging seven and six kills respectively while also making two blocks each. Rothe also achieved a .636 efficiency with no errors in the game.
“It was so awesome to see so many people come out,” Rothe said. “That was a big atmosphere for us and just to be back in our hometown with a sea of blue was really cool.”
UF redshirt sophomore outside Aniya Madkin also put up six kills, with freshman opposite Milica Vidacic close behind her with five and no errors. Redshirt freshman Kira Hutson emerged in her role as an all-around player in set one and a dependable outside, tallying three kills with no attacking errors, five digs, a block and a service ace.
Freshman libero Lily Hayes also had an impressive showing with 13 digs. She was vocal on the floor and appeared to be successfully taking charge of Florida’s back row.
“Lily fit in day one,” Theis said. “If you walk into our gym, you’d have no idea she’s even a freshman.”
Florida battled Norfolk’s All-MEAC outside Gabrielle Gilbert, holding her to six kills at .069 efficiency. The Gators topped Norfolk nearly across the board, out-hitting the Spartans with a .414 efficiency compared to their .103.
Florida begins its three-game road stretch on Tuesday, facing USF at 6 p.m., a rematch of last season's home opener that ended in an upset by the Bulls.
Contact Ava DiCecca at adicecca@alligator.org. Follow her on X @avadicecca24.
