Gators sweep Hoyas

The Florida volleyball team swept Georgetown during the opening night of the Active Ankle Challenge in the O’Connell Center, never allowing the Hoyas to score more than 14 points the whole match.
Coach Wise credited Florida’s win to having a size advantage over Georgetown, tallying up 13.5 blocks on the night. Senior Taylor Brauneis pointed out the Gators’ ability to get the Hoyas out of system early by taking a lot of chances. Brauneis had thirty assists on the night, staying in form despite her sister being on the opposite side of the net for Georgetown. “That says a lot about her,” Coach Wise said, impressed with how calm Brauneis was with so much family in the O’Dome to watch the sisters play.
But the Gators’ first match back in Gainesville was also about learning from their loss to Penn State last weekend. The team improved their serves and put pressure on the Hoyas early.
After having her jersey retired by Eastside High School on Thursday night, Senior Chloe Mann was spectacular as usual, leading the Gators with eleven kills. Mann said Thursday was “a really special night” for her, with Coach Wise adding it was especially nice because “female athletes aren’t always recognized, especially at the high school level,” also complimenting Mann as being “the consummate student-athlete.”
The Active Ankle Challenge wraps up on Saturday with each team playing two matches. The Gators’ first match is at noon against Iona. Coach Wise said the key to beating Iona is controlling the match from first contact and not getting overly anxious. As for the second match, the Gators face Western Michigan and the MAAC Freshman of the Year, a challenge Florida will not take lightly come Saturday night at 7:30.