MINNEAPOLIS – The 13th-ranked Florida volleyball team faces its first road test against the No. 4 Minnesota Golden Gophers on Sunday at Maturi Pavilion.
First serve is slated for 1:30 p.m. ET on the Big Ten Network + with Connor Onion and Emily Ehman on the call. The match can also be heard on the airways of ESPN Gainesville 98.1 FM/850 AM with Tom Collett on the call.
Florida most recently dropped a five-set thriller to No. 12 Stanford on Tuesday, while Minnesota is also coming off a loss after falling to No. 1 Texas in four sets on Wednesday.
The Golden Gophers hold the 5-2 series advantage over the Gators.
National Spotlight
* As a team, the Gators are ranked in the Top-20 in the nation in six categories: total service aces (1st | 39), total team blocks (10th | 37.0), total team assists (11th | 184), total team kills (14th | 197), aces per set (16th | 2.44) and hitting percentage (17th | .312)
* Individually, Merritt Beason is ranked second in the nation in service aces (11), eighth in total points (70.5) and 25th in total kills (54)
* Alexis Stucky ranks 10th in the country in total assists (144) and 24th in service aces with eight, while Bre Kelley is 27th in total blocks with 18
Last Time Against Minnesota
* The last time these two teams faced off, the No. 5 Florida Gators opened their home season with a victory over No. 10 Minnesota, defeating the Golden Gophers in four sets (25-20, 25-19, 22-25, 25-23)
* Four Gators hit double-digit kills in the match, with former Gator T’ara Ceasar leading the way with a season-high 19 kills. Gator alumna Lauren Forte and Merritt Beason each recorded 16 kills on the afternoon, while former Gator Thayer Hall added 11
* The 16 kills for Beason were a career-high, while Forte’s 16 were a Florida-career-high
* Gator alumna Marlie Monserez captained Florida’s offense to a .306 clip on the afternoon, while dishing out a season-high 56 assists
* As a team, Florida held Minnesota to a .223 clip and posted 6.0 blocks at the net. Former Gator Lauren Dooley notched a team-best four blocks, while Hall added three on afternoon
* Four Gators posted double-digit digs on the night as well, with Elli McKissock recording a team-high 19. Monserez posted 14 for her second double-double of the year, while Ceasar and Hall each notched their first double-doubles of the season with 14 and 10 kills, respectively
* Florida recorded eight service aces in the four-setter, led by four from McKissock – tying her career-best mark. Hall added three, while Ceasar pitched in one in the win
Gators in the SEC
* As a team, Florida sits in the top-6 in the league in the following categories:
* Hitting percentage: 5th (.313)
* Service aces: 3rd (2.44)
* Opponent hitting percentage: 6th (.158)
* Individually, the following Gators are ranked in the top-10 in the conference:
* Merritt Beason:
* Aces per set: 4th (0.69)
* Points per set: 10th (4.41)
* Alexis Stucky:
* Assists per set: 4th (10.29)
* Aces per set: 5th (0.57)
* Bre Kelley:
* Hitting percentage: 5th (.444)
* Gabrielle Essix:
* Hitting percentage: 8th (.436)
No. 13 Florida at No. 4 Minnesota Broadcast Information
Date & Time: Sept. 4 | 1:30 p.m. ET
Live Stream: BIG TEN Network +<https://www.foxsports.com/live/btn>
Live Stats: Statbroadcast<http://stats.statbroadcast.com/statmonitr/?id=418179>
Radio: 98.1 FM/850 AM<https://www.wruf.com/listen-live/>
Series Information – No. 13 Florida at No. 4 Minnesota
Golden Gophers | 2022 season synopsis: 2-1
* This is the eighth meeting between the Gators and the Golden Gophers
* Florida trails 2-5 (2-4 under Mary Wise)
* 3-set: 1-1 | 4-set: 1-2 | 5-set: 0-2
* Home: 2-2 | Away: 0-2 | Neutral: 0-1
* Last Time Out: Sept. 5, 2021 | Gainesville, Fla. | W, 3-1 (25-20, 25-19, 22-25, 25-23)
TICKET INFO | Gator Ticket Office Online<http://floridagators.com/sports/2015/12/10/_tickets_volleyball_.aspx> | Call: 352-375-4683 x6800 (Open M-F, 8:30 a.m.-5:00 p.m.)
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