BATON ROUGE – After playing its last four matches on the road, the LSU volleyball team returns home Friday to face No. 19 Florida. First serve is on-tap for 7 p.m. inside the Maravich Center.
Admission is free courtesy of the Advocate’s “Geaux Free” program. Following the match, LSU will honor Lauren Waclawczyk and Michele Williams as part of Senior Night festivities for their contributions to the program. The first 500 fans also will receive LSU volleyball trading cards.
LSU volleyball will be collecting books as part of its season-long book drive, “Geaux Books”, to benefit the Everybody Reads Program through Volunteer in Public Schools. Fans are asked to bring new or used elementary level books to help local students.
“This is going to be a tough senior class to say goodbye to because of the impact that they have had on our program,” head coach Fran Flory said. “Not only have they won an SEC Championship on the court, they have won the SEC West and been to the NCAA Tournament every year they have been here. In the classroom and community, they have had just as much of an impact. The “Geaux Books” program is one of the biggest community service projects done by any volleyball team in the country this year. You can’t say enough about how they represented our program. The loyalty and commitment they have shown to our staff, to our program, and our team is second to none.”
The Tigers (17-8, 10-5 SEC) have pieced together three straight victories to emerge with a one-match lead over Arkansas in the SEC Western Division race. In two of its last three wins, LSU has had to fight off match points.
Helen Boyle is the reigning SEC Freshman of the Week. She garnered consecutive double-doubles and compiled 3.22 kills per set on an impressive .377 hitting percentage to go along with 3.02 digs per set for the weekend. The Eureka, Mo., native hammered a career-best 18 kills versus Auburn last Friday.
“Helen has regained her legs,” Flory said. “This is a long season for a freshman. By beginning of October, they have played more volleyball then they have played in any high school season. It takes them a while to get through that. The ones that recover are huge impacts late in the season, and I think we are seeing that with Helen. What a tribute to her work ethic and her attitude. She’s the type of player that is going to fight to the end, push through the difficult time and be a positive factor for her team.”
Malorie Pardo continues to pace the SEC with 11.82 assists per set. She also has climbed her way to seventh in the nation after posting 40-plus helpers in six of her last nine appearances. Pardo also equaled her career-high with 60 assists and added 10 digs Sunday to compile her team-leading 10th double-double of the season against Georgia.
Desiree Elliott, Madie Jones and Michele Williams have racked up over 3.00 kills per set. LSU is the only team in the SEC to have a trio of players to accomplish that feat. Elliott and Jones are neck-and-neck with 3.57 and 3.49 kills per set to rank fifth and sixth in the SEC rankings.
Jones matched her career-best with 21 kills versus Georgia, while Williams surpassed former All-American Lauren DeGirolamo for 17th place on the program’s all-time kills list. They also played an instrumental role in wiping away all six match points during the fifth set in the Georgia match. Jones garnered kills with the score 14-12, 14-13 and 15-14. Williams countered with two kills and block.
Williams also ignited LSU’s defense and was involved in 14 of the team’s 28 blocks last weekend. Meghan Mannari has played a key role on the Tiger back row and racked up the SEC’s second-best digging average at 4.51 scoops per frame.
Florida (18-5, 11-3 SEC) got back on the winning track with home sweeps over Alabama and Ole Miss after dropping consecutive road tilts to then No. 20 Tennessee and No. 24 Kentucky. The Gators enter Friday’s contest not only with the SEC’s but the nation’s top hitting clip at a .303 ratio. Florida also boasts the SEC’s top defense unit and has held its opponents to a .160 hitting percentage. During a 3-0 sweep of LSU earlier this season, the Gators limited the Tigers to a season-low .027 rate.
Kristy Jaeckel and Kelly Murphy continue to be the catalysts for UF. The duo ranks 1-2 in the SEC’s aces race with 0.40 and 0.39 per set average, respectively. Jaeckel has powered home a team-high 3.42 kills per set to check in at the No. 8 position, while Murphy’s crisp .314 hitting percentage is fifth-highest on the SEC leaderboard.
Defensively, Taylor Unroe is seventh in the SEC and sprawled out for 3.62 digs per set. As of late, Chloe Mann has emerged with 17 blocks over her last three outings. She also has ripped 24 kills on 46 swings with only one error for a .500 hitting efficiency.
“Our kids are excited about playing a great team, and there’s no doubt that Florida is a great team,” Flory said. “Their group is extremely focused, I have a lot of respect for this very talented Florida team especially their seniors along with Mary and her staff. Our team is excited about that challenge. We are going to have a better approach, and we are going to have a more aggressive mentality.”
Live video and live stats of Friday’s match are offered inside the Geaux Zone on LSUsports.net. In-match updates also are available via the program’s social media outlets at http://twitter.com/lsuvolleyball or LSU Volleyball on Facebook. KLSU 91.1 FM will carry the match live in the Baton Rouge area.
The Florida contest marks the final of four Friday Night Meal Deals featuring broiled Fish, rice pilaf and ratatouille. The meal is available for $7 starting at 6 p.m. inside the Courtside Club located at the Northwest Corridor entrance of the arena. Fans can reserve the meal in advance by emailing promotions@lsu.edu or by contacting Katie at (225) 578-5050.