The Ole Miss volleyball team begins SEC play today with a match against No. 11 Florida in
Gainesville.
After going on an eight-match winning streak earlier in the season, the Rebels lost to Memphis last week, before suffering two more losses in the Rice Adidas Invitational II this past weekend.
Caitlin Wernentin prepares to spike the ball during the game versus Ohio State earlier this season. File photo by Christian Johnson
The Rebels were plagued by miscues during the tournament, especially in their 1-3 loss to Austin Peay in which they committed 17 attack errors, 10 service errors, seven block errors and five ball-handling errors. These mistakes need to be cleaned up if the Rebels want any shot at taking down the top team in the SEC.
“Last week was a tough week for our team,” head coach Steven McRoberts said. “I am confident that we will continue to improve and play better as the conference season goes on.”
This weekend marked the first time this season that the Rebels dropped more than one match in a single weekend. After building momentum and confidence with tough nonconference wins, they must now work to put this tough stretch behind them and move on to their SEC schedule.
The Gators, the favorites to win the SEC this year, are 9-3 this season and have won five matches in a row. During this streak they have not allowed a single match to go to five sets, and they are looking polished and confident as they begin their conference schedule.
Having secured a key win early in the season versus No. 2 Nebraska and managing close losses versus No. 3 Texas and No. 7 Southern California, Florida is poised for another deep run in the NCAA Tournament, after losing in the championship game last year to Nebraska.
The Rebels enter the match hungry for the upset that has been a goal for them in years past. Last year the team lost 0-3 in its only match versus the Gators. In fact, Ole Miss picked up only two sets in its past seven matchups with Florida. This year’s team hopes to end that streak and pick up a signature win that could help secure them a spot in the NCAA Tournament.
“We get the opportunity to challenge the top program in the SEC in our conference opener, and our players should be excited about that,” McRoberts said.
Playing on their home court, the Gators will definitely have the advantage, as they posted an impressive 18-1 home record last year, with their only loss coming at the hands of perennial powerhouse Kentucky.
Ole Miss was 3-6 on the road in conference play last year but did manage to come up with wins at South Carolina and at Texas A&M.
“I just want us to keep getting better, and I want us to push this year to make it to the NCAA Tournament,” McRoberts said. “That’s the biggest goal for our program.”
