University of Tennessee Athletics
University of Tennessee
17-5 (3-4)
Florida
12-4 (4-3)
Volleyball Loses to No. 17 Florida, 3-0
October 14, 2015 | Volleyball
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- The Tennessee Volunteers came close to finishing out the third set but could not fully swing the momentum in a 3-0 (25-19, 25-11, 25-23) loss to Florida on Wednesday at Thompson-Boling Arena.
The Vols (17-5, 3-4 SEC) entered the match in search of their first back-to-back wins over top-25 teams since 2012, having beaten then-No. 22 Arkansas 3-1 on Sunday.
"We put ourselves in a position to win the first and third set, but unfortunately, we made some unforced errors we had not been making in transition," Tennessee head coach Rob Patrick said. "That hurt us a little in terms of being able to close out the third set and being able to push through in the first set."
After Florida won a lopsided second set, Tennessee rebounded in a close third set, going on a 5-0 run late. With sophomore Kelsey Bawcombe entering the match to serve, Tennessee moved ahead 22-18 on a kill by Kendra Turner and an error by Florida.
After that, the Gators regained momentum to close out the match on a 7-1 run, winning the third set 25-23 to clinch.
Tennessee continues its three-match homestand with a contest against South Carolina on Sunday at 1:30 p.m.
Sophomore Kanisha Jimenez led Tennessee with nine kills and added five digs. Raina Hembry had six kills and four blocks.
The match was close from the start. The Vols rallied back from a three-point deficit to tie the first set at 16-16. Florida responded with a 3-0 run to go up 19-16 and never trailed from there. The Gators closed out the set with four points in a row at 25-19.
Florida jumped out a 7-1 lead to open the second set and controlled the rest of the way, taking the frame 25-11. Florida hit .667 in the set while holding Tennessee to just .162.
It is the just the second time this season that Tennessee has been shut out.
