Nov. 20, 2011
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - The Auburn volleyball team dropped a straight-set decision to the No. 17-ranked Florida Gators on Sunday afternoon, falling 3-0 (10-25, 17-25, 26-28) at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center.
Auburn fell to 10-19 overall, 4-15 SEC, while the Gators improved to 23-5, 16-3 SEC. It was Florida's 35th consecutive win over the Tigers, dating back to 1990.
Senior Kelly Fidero led all hitters with nine kills on 20 attacks; five of those kills came in the third set. Camila Jersonsky - making her first appearance since Oct. 30 - had five kills, as did Sarah Bullock. Sarah Wroblicky led the Tigers with five digs, and Chloe Rowand had three blocks. Senior setter Christina Solverson earned her fourth start of the season and led Auburn with 13 assists.
Florida out-hit Auburn by a .366-.167 margin and out-dug the Tigers 28-19. The service game was once again a major struggle for Auburn as the Tigers were guilty of 16 service errors with just one ace. Meanwhile, Florida had four aces with nine service errors and had seven team blocks to the Tigers' 4.5.
Kelly Murphy led Florida with eight kills and 14 assists, while Tangerine Wiggs and Kristy Jaeckel had seven kills each.
Auburn was unable to generate any offense in the first set as the Gators took a 25-10 decision. The Tigers had just six kills against seven errors for a -.050 hitting percentage and committed six service errors. Florida never trailed in the opening set, jumping out to a 5-0 lead that kept growing.
The Tigers were much more organized in the second set, but ultimately fell by a 25-17 score. Auburn hit .185 in the frame with nine kills, but again the service game proved troublesome as the Tigers had five more errors. Auburn held an early 3-1 lead, but the Gators came back with a 4-0 run to pull ahead for good. Auburn would get within two points at 11-9, but again the Gators engineered a run ... The second set also saw the return of sophomore Camila Jersonsky to the lineup; she had not played since leaving with an injury against Alabama on Oct. 30.
Set three, however, was a nailbiter that saw the score tied 17 times and six lead changes, but the Tigers would ultimately fall by a 28-26 score. Auburn actually out-hit the Gators in the set (.290-.258) and the teams were even with 15 kills apiece. Neither team led by more than three points during the set with Auburn holding an early 8-5 lead. Florida would take a 15-13 lead at the media timeout, but Auburn would again tie the score at 15-15, then again at 17-17. Kills from Fidero and Bullock gave Auburn a 20-18 lead, and the teams traded blows until a kill from Kathia Rud tied the score once again at 23-23. Florida had its first match point attempt at 24-23, but a block from Rud kept the Tigers alive. A kill from Fidero gave Auburn a chance at set point, but Murphy put one back to tie the score once again. Fidero would once again tie the score after Florida had a second match point opportunity, but an attack error and an overpass on Florida's last serve gave the Gators a third-set win and the sweep in the match.
The Tigers will wrap up the 2011 season at home Wednesday afternoon with a 5 p.m. match against the Georgia Bulldogs at the Student Activities Center. Auburn's two seniors - Kelly Fidero and Christina Solverson - will be honored in pregame ceremonies as part of Senior Day.