<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=3Chfkl_0vlMuXue00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=3Chfkl_0vlMuXue00" width="1956" height="1100" ></figure>NORMAN – The Oklahoma volleyball team dropped its SEC opener in five sets to No. 15 Florida, 21-25, 25-19, 25-18, 18-25, 13-15, inside McCasland Field House Thursday night.The Sooners (6-3, 0-1) led the Gators (10-2, 1-0) in hitting .310 to .254 on the night, while also leading in blocks (9.5 – 8.0)."We played some really good volleyball tonight," head coach Aaron Mansfield said. "The feeling of watching them is overwhelmingly optimistic. I feel like we played really well as a team. We knew Florida was going to be tough, they're one of the best teams in the country. I'm just really proud of how we performed."Kamille Gibson recorded a career-high with 15 kills at a .345 clip. Kari Geissberger led the team with 18 kills at a .607 rate, while Alexis Shelton chipped in 12 kills and added five digs.Payton Chamberlain recorded a double-double, notching 41 assists and 10 digs. Kelli Jo Burgess led the defensive effort with six blocks, while Chamberlain added four and Geissberger notched three.The first set was a back-and-forth affair, with the Sooners leading 15-14 at the media timeout. The Gators used a 6-0 scoring run to take a four-point lead at 23-19 before ultimately taking the set 25-21.Set two was all Oklahoma as the Sooners evened things up with a 25-19 victory. After two quick points from the Gators, OU rattled off an 8-1 run to force a timeout and take a lead they would never relinquish. Firing on all cylinders, the Sooners ran away with the set as they hit .323 while holding Florida to a .077 percentage. The Sooners took a 2-1 lead in the match after hitting an incredible .480 in the third set. OU took its largest lead of the set at 18-12, but the Gators used a 4-0 run to make it 18-16. The Sooners used a late 7-2 run of their own to take the set 25-18. Florida evened things back up with a 25-18 win in the fourth set. In the fifth, the Sooners jumped out to a 10-5 lead before a 10-3 run from the Gators clinched the set and the match.OU is back in action on Sunday when it hosts No. 20 Tennessee at 2 p.m. CT inside McCasland Field House.FOLLOW THE OKLAHOMA SOONERS For updates, follow @OU_Volleyball on Twitter and Instagram, or like Oklahoma Volleyball on Facebook.</div></body>

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Sooners Drop Five-Set Heartbreaker to No. 15 Florida

NORMAN – The Oklahoma volleyball team dropped its SEC opener in five sets to No. 15 Florida, 21-25, 25-19, 25-18, 18-25, 13-15, inside McCasland Field House Thursday night. The Sooners (6-3, 0-1) led the Gators (10-2, 1-0) in hitting .310 to .254 on the night, while also leading in blocks (9.5 – 8.0).