Razorbacks Swept by Gators on Sunday
The Razorbacks had stretches of great play on Sunday but were ultimately bested by the Florida Gators in a sweep (16-25, 22-25, 20-25).
Despite the loss, Arkansas did have some bright spots on the day. Redshirt senior Jada Lawson had a fantastic outing with a season high six kills and hit .238. She also recorded seven digs, an ace and a block.
Lawson was joined by Romani Thurman in solid offensive efforts. Thurman posted a team-high eight kills and hit .200. She also put up four blocks, which included one solo.
Freshman Journey Peppers was a huge presence at the net with six blocks, the highest for any Razorback on the day. Arkansas out-blocked Florida on the day, 8-7.
The Hogs are now 5-16 on the season, 1-9 in the SEC.
Set 1
The two teams steadily traded points in the opening set, but a 4-0 run by the Gators gave them a three-point edge that made the difference. Arkansas came within two at points, but Florida was doing just enough to hold the advantage and didn’t let the Hogs put up multiple points at a time. Down 19-14, Arkansas called time, but the Gators got three of the next four and extended the lead to 22-15. The Razorbacks huddled again, but Florida continued to cruise to a 25-16 set victory.
Set 2
The Gators jumped out to a 4-1 advantage early, but the Hogs rattled off three straight, capped with a kill from Lawson and tied it 4-4. Florida went up by two shortly after, but Lawson stayed hot with an ace and knotted the score at 7-7. There were nine ties total to the media timeout, at which point the Gators took a narrow 15-14 lead. A huge kill by Sydney Maue at the end of a long rally tied it again, but Florida found a little bit of a groove and went up 19-16. Arkansas wasn’t going quietly though, and following a timeout, got the next three to tie it. The Gators huddled up and regained the lead,
Set 3
It seemed that Florida had all the momentum early on as the Gators quickly ran away with a 6-0 lead, but a 5-1 run with kills from Parker Duncan, Thurman, Zoi Evans and Lawson made it 7-5 and put Arkansas in striking distance. Florida got one back, but four straight from the Razorbacks made it 9-8 in their favor and prompted a Florida timeout. The teams traded blows from there, but Arkansas held the lead at the media break, 15-13, off an ace from Avery Calame. The Gators came back swinging and got seven of the next nine points for a 20-17 lead, and the Hogs huddled. While Arkansas came within one off an ace from Evans, the Gators outlasted the Hogs 25-20 for the match sweep.
Up Next
Arkansas hits the road for a midweek match against the Oklahoma Sooners on Wednesday, Oct. 29 at 6 p.m. in Norman. The action will be streamed live on SEC Network+.
More Information
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