VB Preview: #11 Lady Vols at #20 Florida

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The 11th-ranked Tennessee Lady Vols head to the Sunshine State for a ranked matchup against the No. 20 Florida Gators this Friday night at Exactech Arena.

First serve is set for 7 p.m. ET, and the match will be live streamed on SEC Network+. Tennessee (18-3, 9-2 SEC) will look to continue its 7-match road winning streak while going up against the Gators (14-5, 6-4 SEC) for this ranked conference contest.

The Lady Vols enter the match following their 13th sweep of the season, which came Sunday against Texas A&M. Three UT players were tabbed with SEC weekly honors as a result of a perfect 2-0 slate last week. Morgahn Fingall was named SEC Co-Offensive Player of the Week, while Yelianiz Torres received SEC Defensive Player of the Week. Caroline Kerr earned SEC Freshman of the Week recognition for the fifth time this season, setting a new Tennessee program record.

BIG ORANGE ATTACK AMONG NATION'S ELITE GROUPS
Tennessee's attack has been stellar this season, and it's the primary reason for the Lady Vols being 18-3. UT currently ranks second nationally in kills per set with 14.70, third in assists per set (13.45) and eighth in hitting percentage (.293). The Lady Vols lead the SEC in all three categories.

FINGALL CLIMBING THE LEADERBOARD
One of the top attackers in program history, right side Morgahn Fingall continues to climb UT's career kills list. Fingall now boasts 1,473 kills to rank seventh in UT history. She's 25 away from moving into sixth. For the year, her 4.20 kills per set lead the SEC and rank 23rd nationally. She's second in the conference and 24th in the country in points per set at 4.84.

LADY VOLS IN THE RANKINGS
For the first time since 2005, Tennessee cracked the top 10 in the AVCA polls earlier this season. It was the program's highest ranking since being sixth following UT's Final Four run in 2005. The Big Orange currently ranks 11th and has been a mainstay in the polls since Week 2 of the season.

SIDEOUT SUCCESS KEY FACTOR FOR UT EACH MATCH
One element of Tennessee's impressive season that's easy to miss has been the Big Orange winning the battle on sideouts. The Lady Vols are scoring 67 percent of the time when opponents serve, while scoring on 47 percent of the time when UT serves. Tennessee has recorded a sideout percentage of 70 percent or better in 31 sets this year, while holding foes to a sideout percentage of less than 50 percent in 29 sets.

LADY VOLS IN THE SEC WEEKLY HONORS
Tennessee's play this season hasn't gone unrecognized. With many impressive outings from the Lady Vols, the SEC has honored UT players a combined 16 times in eight weeks. Here's the breakdown of each honor won:

5x Freshman of the Week
3x Player of the Week
3x Offensive Player of the Week
3x Defensive Player of the Week
2x Setter of the Week

BREAK OUT THE BROOMS
So far this year, the Lady Vols boast 13 sweeps. Over the last three seasons, UT has swept 37 opponents, including 25 at home. The Big Orange has swept six SEC opponents and went on a streak of 18 straight set wins between Loyola (4th set) and Mississippi State (2nd set).