The Hurricanes defeated the No. 17 Florida State University (FSU) Seminoles 3-1 on Wednesday. It was the team’s second meeting with FSU after they lost to the Seminoles 3-2 in September.
“We’re both a little different teams and it was nice to play at home,” Head Coach Jose Gandara said. “I think we were a little more consistent this time around.”
It was a monster match for several Miami hitters. Senior outside hitter Taylor Scott finished with 20 kills, sophomore outside hitter Olga Strantzali with 16 and redshirt junior outside hitter Kelsie Groot with 15. The crowd at this match far outnumbered any previous crowd at home this season.
“It was awesome because in Greece we don’t have these crowds, so it was weird for me, but I love it,” Strantzali said, a native of Greece.
The Canes started off slowly in the first set, losing 25-20. In game two, the team was down 17-12 at one point before getting its groove back and winning 25-23. Game three was the defining moment in the match when Scott helped to rally the team to a 28-26 win with four kills late after they fell behind in the beginning. In the final game, the Canes dominated 25-14, with more kills from Scott and clutch serving from Strantzali.
“I knew that my team needed me and I just hit my shot. I trusted that my teammates were going to be behind to cover if I got blocked, so I had all the confidence going up,” Scott said when asked about the pivotal kills she got in the third set.
Florida State is one of the toughest offensive and blocking teams in the nation, but senior libero Kalysta White was ready for the challenge.
“In practice this week we’ve been really emphasizing covering our hitters, so that was my goal this game,” White said.
The team faces division rival Virginia at 7 p.m. Friday at the Knight Sports Complex. Gandara is confident that the team will secure another conference win. “I expect good things for this weekend,” he said.