GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Junior Treyaunna Rush turned in her best outing of the season on Saturday, as the Texas A&M volleyball team (11-7, 4-4 SEC) fell to nationally-ranked Florida (12-6, 6-2 SEC) in three sets (12-25, 19-25, 15-25).
Rush finished with a season-high 11 kills on an impressive .476 hitting to lead the team. Camille Conner dished out 25 assists, while the fifth-year setter and Ciera “CiCi” Hecht finished with seven digs apiece.
A&M jumped ahead early in the opening frame behind a pair of kills from Mallory Talbert out of the gate. Rush’s third kill helped end a run by the Gators, before Florida drew its largest lead of the match, sitting at a 21-11 advantage. Despite a team-leading fourth kill from Rush, Florida closed on an 8-1 run to grab the opening set, 25-12.
A match-leading seventh kill for Rush leveled the second set at six, before Florida pulled ahead, 18-10, with a 6-0 run. The Aggies capitalized on an attacking error by the Gators, as back-to-back kills from Rush and a service ace by Taylor Voss brought A&M within four to force Florida to use a timeout. A kill from Morgan Christon off the bench kept the Maroon & White within reach, but the Gators held on for the 25-19 second-set win.
A&M opened the third set on a 6-2 run behind kills from three different Aggies, but six-straight points from Florida gave the Gators a slim two-point edge. Florida continued to climb, before a kill from Christon midway through the set brought A&M back within reach, sitting at a 17-13 deficit. The Gators closed on a 6-0 run to complete the sweep, taking the final set, 25-15.
BIRD BITS
Head coach Laura “Bird” Kuhn
On Treyaunna Rush’s overall performance…
“It was nice to see Trey (Rush) find her rhythm again and have an impact after missing the last few matches for us.”
On what the focus at practice will be this week heading into the Mississippi State series…
“We need to get back into the gym and take advantage of a full week of practice. We need to find our rhythm and get back to the basics.”