Texas A&M Pushes No. 11 Florida to Five Sets

Friday, October 5

Gainesville, Fla.

6 p.m.

Texas A&M

10-6, 3-1SEC

Florida

14-3, 5-0SEC

Team	1	2	3	4	5	Final F
Texas A&M	18	22	25	25	13	2
UF	25	25	21	22	15	3

Photo by: Sam Craft/Texas A&M Athletics

Oct 05, 2018 | Volleyball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

By: Texas A&M Media Relations

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Texas A&M came just short of pulling off a major upset, pushing No. 11 Florida to five sets before falling, 25-18, 25-22, 21-25, 22-25, 15-13, tonight at the Exactech Arena at Stephen C. O'Connell Center.

The Gators improve to 5-0 in Southeastern Conference matches and 14-3 overall. Texas A&M (10-6, 3-1 SEC), playing its third consecutive five-set match, suffers its first conference loss but becomes the first SEC team to take a set off of Florida this season after the Gators won their first four matches in three-set sweeps. It also marked the first time A&M forced a fifth set in eight all-time trips to Gainesville.

Aggie junior outside hitter Hollann Hans led all players with a career-high 32 kills, setting an A&M record for most kills in an SEC match and ranking eighth in the A&M all-time single match records. She also recorded a team-leading seventh double-double of the season as she posted 11 digs.

Sophomore setter Camille Conner tallied her sixth double-double with 49 assists and 12 digs. Senior libero Amy Houser led all players with 22 digs, marking the third consecutive match she surpassed 20 digs and the sixth time this season she has reached the 20-dig milestone. Junior outside hitter Brookah Palmer and freshman defensive specialist Allison Fields also posted double-figure digs with 11 and 10, respectively. Palmer also had three aces to lead the Aggies to a 9-7 lead in total aces.

Florida had three players record double-figure kills, with Holly Carlton leading the Gators with 14 kills while hitting .343. Carlton also finished with a match-high seven blocks as the Gators outblocked A&M, 10 to 6.5. Allie Gregory had a team-high 20 digs for Florida.

A&M lead in kills (69-59) while Florida led in hitting percentage (.256 to .236). A&M led in aces, 9-7, but committed 14 service errors to the Gators' six.

UP NEXT
The Aggies conclude a three-match road swing at South Carolina in Columbia on Sunday. First serve against the Gamecocks, who also are coming off their first SEC loss after getting swept at Missouri, is at 1:30 p.m. (12:30 p.m. CT) at the Carolina Volleyball Center. The match will be streamed on SEC Network+.

SET-BY-SET SUMMARIES

Set 1 – Florida led by as many as 12 points and was up, 19-8, when the Aggies reeled off five unanswered point, including three kills by Hans to get within 19-13. A&M, which was outhit, .600 to .292, stayed within six points at 21-15 following a kill by freshman middle blocker London Austin-Roark before the teams began trading points for the remainder of the frame, which ended on a service error by the Aggies.

Set 2 – Florida used a 3-0 run to build its largest lead at 12-7, forcing A&M to call a timeout. The Aggies responded coming out the timeout, outscoring the Gators, 9-3, with Hans posting three of her nine kills in the set during the rally, and an ace by Fields giving A&M its first lead in the match, 16-15. An A&M service error marked the start of a 6-1 surge by the Gators, but the Aggies fought back, outscoring the Gators, 5-1, to tie the score, 22-22. Florida, which outhit A&M, .238 to .175, called a timeout and then scored three unanswered points to close out the set and take a 2-0 lead in the match.

Set 3 – There were nine ties and five lead changes with the final tie coming at 15-15 on a kill by Aggie sophomore middle blocker Makena Patterson. Fields then followed with an ace to give the Aggies a lead they would not lose. A&M, which outhit Florida, .283 to .143, continued on an 8-1 run to build a 22-16 advantage. Florida got within 23-19 before Hans split the Gator block for her eighth kill in the stanza, putting A&M at set point. Florida staved off two set points with a kill and an ace before a kill by Austin-Roark closed out the 25-21 third-set win, marking the first time the Gators lost a set in an SEC match this season, ending their streak of 14 consecutive sets won in conference play.

Set 4 – Florida jumped out to an 8-3 lead but the Aggies chipped away at the deficit and were within 11-8 before reeling off six unanswered points to take their largest lead, 14-11. There would be a total of 11 ties and eight lead changes in the seesaw battle before Hans took over. Florida, which was outhit, .257 to .190, held a 22-21 edge, when Hans posted one of her seven kills in the set. Palmer then gave the Aggies the lead with an ace, and Hans followed with back-to-back kills to close out the set as the Aggies forced a fifth set for the first time in eight all-time trips to Gainesville.

Set 5 – Florida, which has never lost a home match against the Aggies, built its largest lead at 10-5, but the Aggies continued to fight back, getting within 11-10 on a kill by Hans. Florida countered with a kill, and A&M followed with an attack error to put the Gators up, 13-10. Patterson put the Aggies within 13-11 with her sixth kill of the match, but an A&M service error put the Gators at match point. Hans kept the Aggies alive with back-to-back kills, putting A&M within 14-13 before freshman of the year candidate Thayer Hall closed out the Gators' victory with her 10^th kill of the match.

TEXAS A&M QUOTES
Head Coach Laura "Bird" Kuhn
On her thoughts on the match…
"I'm extremely proud of the way this team fights and competes point for point. Being on the road in an environment like that is what we train for. No doubt Florida challenged our identity and how we were going to compete.

"We knew it was going to be a battle from the service line. First contact is crucial. The match came down to the little things, being clean and terminating when the ball was on our side. You have to earn points in end game situations."

Visit 12thMan.com for more information on Texas A&M volleyball. Aggie fans also can keep up to date with the team on Facebook and on Twitter and Instagram by following @AggieVolleyball.