Volleyball Visits FSU for Midweek Matchup
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – The University of Miami volleyball team will look to bounce back from its first defeat of the season last weekend when it faces in-state rival Florida State on the road Wednesday night.
After defeating Notre Dame, 3-1, Friday to earn its ninth straight victory since the start of the season, the Hurricanes fell at Louisville in straight sets Sunday – their first road defeat since Nov. 20, 2016.
“That first loss was really difficult for us,” redshirt junior setter Haley Templeton said. “We really wanted to be that 10-0 team and one of the two undefeated teams in the country. It shows us that we still have things to work on and that we can always be better. Especially now that we play FSU.”
Miami dropped both 2016 contests to the Seminoles and has come away as a winner in only one of the last nine matches against its in-state rivalry. That win came in four sets at the James L. Knight Sports Complex on Nov. 4, 2016. Templeton contributed match-high 46 assists.
“It’s a big rivalry and it’s a lot of fun playing them,” Templeton said. “Their gym is insane, probably one of my favorite gyms to play in, mainly for the competition that you feel from the moment you step in it. I mean it is FSU, always one of the top teams in the ACC, so it’s always a great feeling to beat them.”
Templeton could not aid her team against the Seminoles in either match last season due to injury and cannot wait to play a role in the rivalry once again.
“It was really hard because I had never sat out a match before, especially against FSU,” she said. “It really hit me that I would not be playing for the rest of the season. The first match was one of the first ACC matches I didn’t play in, so it was hard to sit and watch the team, without being able to help them when they are struggling.”
This past weekend, the Seminoles (8-4, 2-2 ACC), who are 5-1 at home this season, lost consecutive matches for the first time in 2017. Like Miami, then-No. 21 FSU made trips to Louisville and Notre Dame and lost both contests without winning a set. As a result, on Monday the Seminoles fell out of the AVCA Coaches Poll.
“We are so ready to get back on the court and show that we are a better team than we were on Sunday,” Templeton said.
The Canes will come back home for the second match of the week. They welcome Pittsburgh, one of the two undefeated ACC teams this season, at noon on Sunday.
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