UF VB: No. 11 Gators Bounce Back with Five-Set Win Over No. 20 Baylor

Three players notched double-digit kills, while three reached double figures in digs.

Box Score<https://floridagators.com/documents/2025/9/14/baylor_box_score.pdf>

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The No. 11 Florida volleyball team protected its home floor on Sunday afternoon, outlasting No. 20 Baylor in five sets, 25-20, 22-25, 27-25, 22-25, 15-9.

The victory marked Florida’s seventh-straight win in the O’Dome and the first win at home against a ranked opponent under first-year head coach Ryan Theis. It was also the Gators’ first win over a ranked opponent since Sept. 17, 2024 when Florida took down then-No. 18 Florida State in five sets.

After being recognized before the match for surpassing 2,000 career assists, setter Alexis Stucky recorded her third double-double of the season with 45 assists and 10 digs.

Stucky directed the offense to a .269 hitting percentage and three double-figure kill performances, led by outside hitter Jordyn Byrd’s team-high 21 kills on a .500 hitting percentage. Fellow outside hitter Aniya Madkin posted a season-best 15 kills, while Jaela Auguste turned in a season-high .647 clip to go along with 13 kills.

Florida held Baylor to a .246 hitting percentage and out blocked the Bears 9.0-5.0. Middle blockers Alec Rothe and Auguste along with Madkin registered four a piece, while outside Kira Hutson tallied three to go along with her two kills.

In the backcourt, Ella Vogel picked up a career-high 15 digs, while freshman libero Lily Hayes followed in double digits with 10. Senior Emily Canaan and Hutson both contributed eight each to the Gators 56.

The Gators dropped nine aces to the Bears two, with Hayes leading the way with a career-high three. Vogel pitched in two, while Auguste, Canaan, Hutson and Lee recorded one each.

Baylor’s Manuela Bibinbe led the way offensively for the Bears with 21 kills.

Records:

No. 11 Florida (5-2, 0-0 SEC)

No. 20 Baylor (5-2, 0-0 Big 12)

Series record:

3-2 (1-0 under Theis)

3-set: 2-1 | 4-set: 0-1 | 5-set: 1-0

Home: 2-2 | Away: 0-0 | Neutral: 1-0

How It Happened
Set 1

* In the opening set, Baylor took the initial point of play to garner the Gators attention. Florida responded quickly to tie it up at 1-1 and from there they went back and forth with the Bears, before gaining a 5-3 lead. Baylor then responded with three of the next five points to get the score within one at 7-6. With an ace from Vogel and a kill from Auguste UF secured a four-point lead at 11-7 before Baylor crept back in to get the score within one point at 11-10. The Bears called its first timeout of the match trailing 14-10 after back to back kills from Madkin, both assisted by Stuckey. Hutson remained at the service line for the Gators and served five straight before Baylor quickly called its second timeout of the match at 17-10. After the break Florida lifted its lead to eight at 19-11, marking a set high. From there, BU initiated a comeback in the first, taking seven of the next nine points. With the score standing at 21-18, Florida was eager to close out and gain a 1-0 advantage against the No. 20 Bears. The final four points for the Gators was a combined effort with a kill from Byrd, a service error from Baylor, another kill from Madkin, marking her fourth of the set, and a service ace from Hayes to close out at 25-20.
Set 2

* After falling by five in the initial set, Baylor came out strong in the second, claiming five of the first seven points. The Bears 5-2 lead was their best lead of the match thus far before they extended it to 9-5 and later 15-10. Challenged early on, Florida began its comeback with two blocks from Rothe, a kill from Hutson, and another service ace from Hayes, to close the margin at 16-15 and only trail by one. From there it was a back and forth battle from both sides of the net, and the score remained within three points for the next 16 points, with Baylor maintaining the lead. With the second set on the line at 24-21, Florida’s Byrd snagged a necessary kill to keep the Gators alive at 24-22. Despite their second set efforts, UF was unable to make a comeback and ultimately fell 25-22 to even the score at 1-1 heading into the third.
Set 3

* Similar to the first two sets, the third started off with immediate lead changes between the Gators and Baylor. There were eight ties (1-1, 2-2, 3-3, 4-4, 5-5, 7-7, 9-9, 10-10) in the first 20 points of play. However, the momentum shifted in favor of Florida after three consecutive kills from Stuckey, Byrd, and Hutson. UF held a 14-11 advantage when Baylor called its first timeout of the third set. Coming out of timeout the Gators were tested by the Bears but UF never trailed for the remainder of the third set. After Florida hit the 20-point mark first (20-18), Baylor won two of the next three points to get the score within one at 21-20. Coach Theis then called his first timeout of the third to reset Florida for the final few points of the set. Coming out of timeout, Baylor continued to press the Gators, tying it up five more times at 21-21, 22-22, 23-23, 24-24, and 25-25 before UF pulled ahead in a photo finish at 27-25. The final two points of the set fell in favor of UF with a service error from Baylor and an ace from Hutson. The Gators now stood with a 2-1 advantage before entering the fourth.
Set 4

* Looking to secure the fourth set and close out the match, Florida took seven of the first 10 points and earned a 7-3 start in front. Baylor was determined to shut UF’s momentum down and called a timeout after trailing by four. Following the timeout, UF remained composed and stretched its lead to six at 10-4. Hayes maintained Florida’s six-point advantage and served her third ace of the match at 14-8. From there Baylor began its resurgence and put the set within one at 16-15. Florida immediately responded with a kill from Auguste, but Baylor didn’t hesitate, taking the next three points to gain its first lead of the set at 18-17. The Gators followed suit and took the next two points to garner the lead once more at 19-18. The score was then knotted at 19-19, 20-20, 21-21, following a similar sequence as the last two sets. After being tied up at 21 apiece, Baylor pulled ahead with a score of 23-21 before the Gators called for a timeout. Florida was awarded the first point out of timeout due to a service error from the Bears, bringing the score within one at 23-22. After a successful challenge and a kill, Baylor took the fourth set 25-22 to force a fifth and final set.
Set 5

* Baylor took the first two points of the final set before the Gators got on the board with a kill from Madkin, marking her 14th of the match. Florida went on to win three of the next four points to boast a 4-3 lead. The score was quickly evened out at 5-5 but with Vogel at the service line for the Gators, UF won seven consecutive points to garner a 12-5 lead. Baylor returned to the scoreboard to earn the next three points and put the fifth set within four at 12-8. Florida called its first timeout of the final set and then claimed two of the next three points to gain match point at 14-9. The final point of the match was an ace from Hayes to mark her fourth of the night and lift the Gators to a 15-9 set victory.
Hear from Head Coach Ryan Theis:
On what he thought was the spark that helped Florida secure the match win in the fifth set…
“Just one little thing can be the spark, I think after we blew a lead in the fourth and then started down early in the fifth, it might be as simple as Bella Lee’s ace to put us from 3-2 to 4-2.

Outside Hitter Aniya Madkin on recording her most kills as a Gator…
“It feels great and am excited for more to come. Stucky set all the hitters great balls and as a team we were getting digs and serve passes that made it easier to swing hard.”

Notables

* The Gators move to 2-0 in five-set matches in the 2025 campaign.
* Florida improves to 2-0 inside the O’Dome this season.
* Aniya Madkin and Ella Vogel made their first career start in the Orange and Blue
* The Gators are now 2-2 against teams ranked in the AVCA Top-25
* Florida sits 4-0 when playing on a Sunday
* UF jumps to 3-1 in September matches
* The Gators earned their first win against a Big 12 opponent this season
* Alexis Stucky registered her 13th career double-double with 45 assists and 10 digs.
* Florida registered two five-set team-highs:
* .269 hitting percentage
* 9 service aces
* Three Gators finished with double-digit kills:
* Jordyn Byrd: 21
* Aniya Madkin: 15
* Jaela Auguste: 13
* Three names registered double-digit digs:
* Ella Vogel: 15
* Lily Hayes: 13
* Alexis Stucky: 10
Up Next
Florida closes out its nonconference slate on the road in Wisconsin, as head coach Ryan Theis and assistant coaches Abby Gilleland and Ryan Walthall return to Milwaukee, who is receiving votes in the latest AVCA rankings, for a Friday night matchup against Marquette on Sept. 19 at 7 p.m. The Gators then head to Madison on Sept. 21 for a Sunday, showdown at the Kohl Center against No. 6 Wisconsin, with first serve set for 1 p.m.