Nov. 14, 2002
LEXINGTON, Ky. –
Georgia-Florida Game Notes
The University of Kentucky volleyball team will wrap up the 2002 Southeastern Conference regular season this weekend with a road trip to Athens, Ga., on Friday, Nov. 15 and No. 4 Florida in Gainesville on Sunday, Nov. 17. Kentucky enters the weekend with an even 13-13 record, while sitting at 6-8 in the conference. A win on Friday over the Bulldogs could give the Cats a potential seventh seed in the SEC Tournament next weekend in Fayetteville, Ark.
The Cats had an extremely exciting three-match set last week, defeating LSU in Baton Rouge on Nov. 5 before returning home to tackle Morehead State on Nov. 7. On Sunday, UK was able to overcome a 14-10 fifth-game deficit against Tennessee to lead 15-14, but dropped the match after the Vols ripped off three consecutive points for the 17-15 win in Knoxville.
Since the Cats and Dogs last met on Oct. 27, UK has gone 5-1, including the win over UGA, which started a five-match streak. UGA is 3-2 including the loss to UK, but rides a three-match win streak into Friday’s contest, having beat Tennessee, Auburn and Alabama in the last two weeks. Leading the UGA squad is Julia Petruschke, who averages a league-leading 5.28 kills per game and is the reigning SEC Player of the Week. Last week against Auburn she had a career-best .621 hitting percentage, while her 17 digs against Alabama were also a career high.
With its win over the Bulldogs on Oct. 27, UK evened the overall series record at 20. UK has taken the last three meetings, breaking an eight-match Georgia streak which dated back to the 1997 season.
Florida continues its hot play late in the season, owning the longest NCAA Division I win streak at 21 matches. The Gators are 24-1 overall and a perfect 14-0 in conference play. The Gators haven’t dropped a game since Oct. 18 when they defeated LSU, 3-1, and have lost only seven games all season.
Aury Cruz averages 4.57 kills per game to lead her team, while Nicole McCray is the team’s most accurate hitter with a .402 percentage.
Since the UK and UF last met, the Gators are 6-0, including the win in Lexington. Sunday serves as Senior Day in Gainesville for Florida’s McCray and Benavia Jenkins. Florida owns a 26-9 overall advantage in the series with Kentucky. The Cats haven’t won a match over UF in more than 12 years, dating back to Nov. 10, 1990, a 3-0 victory in Lexington.Friday’s match in Athens gets underway at 7 p.m., while the Wildcats face the Gators on Senior Day in Gainesville at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday.
