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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Sunday, November 3
Gainesville, Fla.
12 PM
Ole Miss
at
Florida
Photo by: Ole Miss Athletics
Volleyball Looks to Carry Momentum at No. 24 Florida
11/2/2024 | Volleyball
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Seeking a top-25 win, the Ole Miss volleyball program heads to No. 24 Florida for a clash on Sunday at 12 p.m. CT.
The Rebels (14-7, 4-5 SEC) enter the weekend with momentum, after recording a key SEC road win at Auburn, while the Gators (15-5, 6-3 SEC), enter on the heels of a win over Arkansas on Wednesday.
RALLY POINTS
SERIES HISTORY
LAST TIME OUT
The Rebels earned a key SEC road win, defeating Auburn, 3-1 on Wednesday night in Auburn, Alabama.
Several Rebels lit up the box score, tallying season and career-highs. Shayla Meyer finished with a career-high 21 digs alongside 13 kills, while Payton Brgoch notched a season-high 17 kills. Emma Ammerman stuffed the stat sheet with a season-high 12 kills, a career-high five service aces, six digs and three blocks, while Mokihana Tufono shined, recording 53 assists and 13 digs. Tessa Jones also matched her career-high in total blocks with four in her first SEC start.
RISING STAR
Nia Washington is in the midst of a breakout junior season and her play has elevated the Rebels to new heights, as they've surged past last season's win total by early October.
Washington has become a lethal hitter in recent weeks, averaging 4.09 kills per set in conference play, compared to her 3.49 kills per set average this season. The New Orleans native has four, 20-kill matches in her last seven contests and has already blown past all of her previous career-highs across numerous categories so far.
Her play has gained her recognition on the national scale, as she tallied 20 kills in a win against Tennessee and 28 kills in a win against LSU, before being named to NCAA Volleyball's "Rotation of the Week". The Rebels are now 8-2 in matches where she hits over .200.
MOKI MAGIC
After tallying 104 assists over two, four-set SEC wins against Tennessee and LSU, Mokihana Tufono earned her first SEC Setter of the Week honors on October 7.
Tufono opened the week with a career-high 54 assists in the win over Tennessee, while adding eight digs and two blocks. From there, Tufono added another 50 assists and 11 digs in the win over LSU, while also matching a career-best with five total blocks. Her efforts were particularly critical in helping Nia Washington rise to new heights, as Washington also set career-highs in back-to-back matches with 20 and 28 kills.
NIE-FENSE
Following a standout defensive performance in Houston, Cammy Niesen earned SEC weekly honors for the first time since 2022, as the junior libero was named the SEC Co-Defensive Player of the Week on September 23.
Niesen tallied 58 digs and 13 assists, while recording the 1,000th dig of her career during her award-winning weekend. Niesen was particularly impactful in the five-set win over Houston, with 19 digs and six assists, as well as notching 21 digs in the win over Texas A&M Commerce. With performances of 20 digs (Arkansas), 17 digs (Tennessee), 17 (LSU) and 15 (Texas A&M), Niesen tallied seven consecutive matches of 15 or more digs for the first time in her career.
FAMILY AFFAIR
Blocking runs in the Ratliff family. In four years, Ole Miss middle blocker Sasha Ratliff has established herself as one of the top blockers in program history, ranking first all-time in the rally scoring era with 464 total blocks, first in block assists with 371 and second in solo blocks with 93. A dominant force at the net, Ratliff has tallied 100-plus blocks in each of her last three seasons and is looking to do it a fourth straight time as she enters her fifth year as a Rebel. Her knack for blocking comes from her father, Theo, who was a shot blocker too. One of basketball's best, he ranks 20th in NBA history with nearly 2,000 blocks in his 16-year career.
CLIMBING THE LADDER
Several Rebels are poised to etch their names in the all-time record books in 2024 across multiple different metrics.
Sasha Ratliff and Payton Brgoch are seeking to end their careers at No. 1 and No. 2 on the all-time blocks list (post rally scoring). Ratliff (464) has taken the No. 1 spot, while Brgoch sits at No. 3 (419) and just 187blocks away from passing Nakeyta Clair (435) for No. 2.
Additionally, Ratliff and Brgoch also rank 3rd and 5th respectively on the combined blocks list. Ratliff sits behind Genevieve Shy (1993-96 - 502 blocks) and Julie Link (1983-86 - 484 blocks), who both competed during the sideout scoring era.
Junior libero Cammy Niesen continues to rewrite the record books on the defensive side by rising up the top-10 all-time in the rally scoring era.
Niesen stands at 1,198 career digs, which ranks sixth all-time in program history. Niesen needs 34 digs to pass Nicole Purcell and move into the top-five.
Get rewarded for attending events by joining Rebel Rewards powered by Coca-Cola, the official fan loyalty program of the Ole Miss Rebels. Download the Ole Miss Sports mobile app, sign up for a Rebel Rewards account, and start earning points immediately that can be redeemed for exclusive prizes and experiences.
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Rebels by following Ole Miss Volleyball on X at @OleMissVB, on Instagram at @olemissvb and on Facebook at Ole Miss Volleyball. See exclusive photo and video content from behind the scenes and connect in real time with everything Ole Miss.
The Rebels (14-7, 4-5 SEC) enter the weekend with momentum, after recording a key SEC road win at Auburn, while the Gators (15-5, 6-3 SEC), enter on the heels of a win over Arkansas on Wednesday.
RALLY POINTS
- The Rebels are set to face their second, top-25 foe of the season. Sunday also marks the end of a road trip, before three consecutive weeks at home.
- Junior outside hitter Nia Washington continues to shine in a breakout campaign and has now tallied all four of her career 20-kill matches in SEC play this season. The Rebels are 8-2 in matches where she hits .200 or better.
- Sasha Ratliff is on the chase for 1,000 kills in her career, standing at 997 in her career. Ratliff ranks 10th all-time at Ole Miss in kills in the rally scoring era. Additionally, she could become the third Rebel ever with at least 1,000 kills and 400 blocks.
- Libero Cammy Niesen now stands at 1,198 career digs, which ranks sixth all-time at Ole Miss.
- The service game has become critical for the Rebels to have success this season, as the team is 13-1 overall when they tally more service aces than their opponent.
- Those metrics were confirmed further on Oct. 30, when the Rebels held Auburn to zero service aces, which was the first time they have held an SEC opponent to zero aces since November 27, 2021 against Alabama.
SERIES HISTORY
- Ole Miss is hoping to break through against the Gators, but trail 7-61 in the all-time series.
- The Rebels are seeking their first win over the Gators since 1989 and their first ever win in Gainesville, with the remaining seven victories coming in Oxford or at neutral sites. Nevertheless, the Rebels have been competitive in recent history, forcing Florida to five sets in 2022, in a match that Payton Brgoch tallied 16 kills to lead the team.
LAST TIME OUT
The Rebels earned a key SEC road win, defeating Auburn, 3-1 on Wednesday night in Auburn, Alabama.
Several Rebels lit up the box score, tallying season and career-highs. Shayla Meyer finished with a career-high 21 digs alongside 13 kills, while Payton Brgoch notched a season-high 17 kills. Emma Ammerman stuffed the stat sheet with a season-high 12 kills, a career-high five service aces, six digs and three blocks, while Mokihana Tufono shined, recording 53 assists and 13 digs. Tessa Jones also matched her career-high in total blocks with four in her first SEC start.
RISING STAR
Nia Washington is in the midst of a breakout junior season and her play has elevated the Rebels to new heights, as they've surged past last season's win total by early October.
Washington has become a lethal hitter in recent weeks, averaging 4.09 kills per set in conference play, compared to her 3.49 kills per set average this season. The New Orleans native has four, 20-kill matches in her last seven contests and has already blown past all of her previous career-highs across numerous categories so far.
Her play has gained her recognition on the national scale, as she tallied 20 kills in a win against Tennessee and 28 kills in a win against LSU, before being named to NCAA Volleyball's "Rotation of the Week". The Rebels are now 8-2 in matches where she hits over .200.
MOKI MAGIC
After tallying 104 assists over two, four-set SEC wins against Tennessee and LSU, Mokihana Tufono earned her first SEC Setter of the Week honors on October 7.
Tufono opened the week with a career-high 54 assists in the win over Tennessee, while adding eight digs and two blocks. From there, Tufono added another 50 assists and 11 digs in the win over LSU, while also matching a career-best with five total blocks. Her efforts were particularly critical in helping Nia Washington rise to new heights, as Washington also set career-highs in back-to-back matches with 20 and 28 kills.
NIE-FENSE
Following a standout defensive performance in Houston, Cammy Niesen earned SEC weekly honors for the first time since 2022, as the junior libero was named the SEC Co-Defensive Player of the Week on September 23.
Niesen tallied 58 digs and 13 assists, while recording the 1,000th dig of her career during her award-winning weekend. Niesen was particularly impactful in the five-set win over Houston, with 19 digs and six assists, as well as notching 21 digs in the win over Texas A&M Commerce. With performances of 20 digs (Arkansas), 17 digs (Tennessee), 17 (LSU) and 15 (Texas A&M), Niesen tallied seven consecutive matches of 15 or more digs for the first time in her career.
FAMILY AFFAIR
Blocking runs in the Ratliff family. In four years, Ole Miss middle blocker Sasha Ratliff has established herself as one of the top blockers in program history, ranking first all-time in the rally scoring era with 464 total blocks, first in block assists with 371 and second in solo blocks with 93. A dominant force at the net, Ratliff has tallied 100-plus blocks in each of her last three seasons and is looking to do it a fourth straight time as she enters her fifth year as a Rebel. Her knack for blocking comes from her father, Theo, who was a shot blocker too. One of basketball's best, he ranks 20th in NBA history with nearly 2,000 blocks in his 16-year career.
CLIMBING THE LADDER
Several Rebels are poised to etch their names in the all-time record books in 2024 across multiple different metrics.
Sasha Ratliff and Payton Brgoch are seeking to end their careers at No. 1 and No. 2 on the all-time blocks list (post rally scoring). Ratliff (464) has taken the No. 1 spot, while Brgoch sits at No. 3 (419) and just 187blocks away from passing Nakeyta Clair (435) for No. 2.
Additionally, Ratliff and Brgoch also rank 3rd and 5th respectively on the combined blocks list. Ratliff sits behind Genevieve Shy (1993-96 - 502 blocks) and Julie Link (1983-86 - 484 blocks), who both competed during the sideout scoring era.
Junior libero Cammy Niesen continues to rewrite the record books on the defensive side by rising up the top-10 all-time in the rally scoring era.
Niesen stands at 1,198 career digs, which ranks sixth all-time in program history. Niesen needs 34 digs to pass Nicole Purcell and move into the top-five.
Get rewarded for attending events by joining Rebel Rewards powered by Coca-Cola, the official fan loyalty program of the Ole Miss Rebels. Download the Ole Miss Sports mobile app, sign up for a Rebel Rewards account, and start earning points immediately that can be redeemed for exclusive prizes and experiences.
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Rebels by following Ole Miss Volleyball on X at @OleMissVB, on Instagram at @olemissvb and on Facebook at Ole Miss Volleyball. See exclusive photo and video content from behind the scenes and connect in real time with everything Ole Miss.
Players Mentioned
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