No. 17 Baylor volleyball swept No. 7 Florida in three straight sets, not allowing the Gators to score 20 in any of the three on Saturday night in Exatech Arena.
The Bears (3-3) handed Florida (4-3) their first back-to-back home non-conference losses since 2014, where they fell to Texas 1-3 and then Marquette 2-3.
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Florida had not been swept in three-straight sets yet this season, but the Bears delivered it. Baylor won the first set at 25-19, the second at 25-18, and the third in 25-16. The Gators hadn't lost a match at 3-0 since they fell to No. 3 Kentucky at home in March of 2021 in the extended 2020 season.
The Bears won both matches against UF on the weekend to even the all-time series at 2-2.
Lauren Harrison once again was the shining light for the Bears, with a .500 attack percentage in Saturday's matchup. She led the team in kills with 14, dethroning Yossiana Pressley's four-match streak as the kills leader.
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Hannah Sedwick had 31 assists to lead the team, and assisted on five blocks as well. Kara McGhee helped build some brick walls for the Bears, with seven block assists. Pressley led the team in digs with nine and had 13 kills.
SET ONE
Baylor started out hot, putting five straight points on the Gators, uninterrupted, with two Lauren Harrison kills. Florida put two points up on the Bears, which BU answered quickly, but then the Gators repaid again. Florida brought themselves back into the match but the Bears were prepared. They matched each other point-for-point and a media timeout was called when Baylor led 15-13. Baylor scored the next two, and Florida's Mary Wise wasn't content, calling a timeout of her own. Florida errors added to the Green & Gold's lead, making it 22-16 when wise would pause again. A kill by Yossiana Pressley coupled with two more attack errors by the Gators would end the set in the Bears' favor.
SET TWO
The Bears got it rolling with two straight kills from Lauren Harrison. Baylor and Florida would keep matching each other's points early. The Gators were pushing back on BU, but the Green & Gold were answering their pressure. The Bears had three straight points, two in a row coming from Avery Skinner. With one point scored for the Gators from a BU service error, Baylor got right back at it with another three straight points; this time from Pressley and Harrison with an attack error on UF in between to make it 11-9. They went back to swapping points at 15-all, but Skinner helped break the pattern. Baylor gained steam at the 18-16 mark. The next three-point Baylor run was thanks to attacking errors from the Gators, but a Pressley kill made it 22-18. BU went in on the last few opportunities full force, and took the set 25-18, not allowing Florida to reach the 20-point mark in two straight sets.
SET THREE
BU started off with a Pressley kill, followed by Harrison and Skinner. Florida had kills of their own to make it 7-3 when Florida called timeout. There was an ace by Shanel Bramschreiber, then a Florida error and blocks from Hannah Sedwick, Kara McGhee and Pressley made it 12-3. The Bears kept pulling ahead but Florida was trying to catch up. Baylor didn't let them get too close, going up 18-12. Skinner and Pressley were responsible for the last few kills, with the final point coming from a Harrison shot. The Bears kept it rolling, pushing all the way to set point and set win to sweep the Gators. The last set moved quickly and was won 25-16 by the Bears.
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