LEXINGTON, KY – After pushing a ranked opponent to five sets on the road for the second straight match, the Florida volleyball team came up short against No. 3 Kentucky (16-25, 25-21, 25-19, 21-25, 6-15) on Sunday afternoon in front of more than 4,000 fans inside Historic Memorial Coliseum.
 
Florida’s defense held Kentucky to a .201 hitting percentage, marking the Wildcats’ lowest in SEC play and second-lowest overall this season, only behind their .168 performance against No. 1 Nebraska.
Setter Alexis Stucky finished with 42 assists and 11 digs for her second-consecutive double-double, as outside hitter Jordyn Byrd led the Gators offense attack with 17 kills. Florida tallied 59 kills to Kentucky’s 57, but recorded 36 attacking errors to hit .120 as a team. 
 
Middle blocker Alec Rothe had a notable performance, tying her career-best 14 kills and seven blocks, while hitting .357 for a match high.
Outside hitter Aniya Madkin finished one shy of double-digits with nine kills, while middle blocker Jaela Auguste and Stucky both tallied seven a piece. Freshman Milica Vidacic and redshirt freshman Kira Hutson combined for four with three and one, respectively.
 
At the net, the Gators posted a season-high 14.0 blocks and had three players record four or more: Rothe (7), Auguste (4) and Madkin (4), while Byrd, Stucky and Vidacic each tallied three blocks.
 
Florida’s little’s highlighted Sunday’s performance with 72 digs, which marks a five-set high. Freshman libero Lily Hayes posted a career-high 24 digs to lead the way for the Gator defense. Redshirt freshman Ella Vogel recorded 13, while senior Emily Canaan tallied 10. Hutson (7), Madkin (3) and Auguste (2) combined for 12 and Byrd, Rothe and Vidacic each pitched in one apiece. 
 
Behind the service line, Auguste and Canaan dropped Florida’s two aces both in the second set, while the Wildcats finished with six.
 
Kentucky’s duo of Eva Hudson and Brooklyn DeLeye combined for 41 of the Wildcats 57 kills with 21 and 20, respectively. 

Records:

Florida (10-7, 5-3 SEC)

No. 3 Kentucky (13-3, 7-0 SEC)

 

Series record:

53-24 (0-1 under Theis)

3-set: 37-12; 4-set: 9-4; 5-set: 7-8

Home: 26-12; Away: 23-11; Neutral: 4-1

 

How It Happened

Set 1


After starting down 0-2, a kill from Auguste followed by a block from Byrd and Rothe evened the score, as the two teams battled back-and-forth at the start of set one. Kentucky gained a three-point lead (10-7), but attacks from Rothe and Byrd allowed the Gators to creep back within one (11-12) before heading into the media timeout trailing 11-15. Following the break, Kentucky scored three-straight to extend its lead to 11-18 and force Florida to call a timeout. A kill by Rothe ended Florida’s scoring drought and points from Auguste, Byrd and Stucky kept the Gators alive, but attacks from Kentucky’s duo of Deleye and Hudson allowed the Wildcats to take a 25-16 set-one win.
Set 1 Team Stats | .000 Hitting %| 10 Kills | 8 Assists | 12 Digs | 3.0 Blocks | 0 Aces
Kentucky Stats | .241 Hitting %| 12 Kills | 11 Assists | 16 Digs | 4.0 Blocks | 1 Ace

WE SEE YOU @AlecRothe

📺 https://t.co/Ds1jla9pDD (ESPN) pic.twitter.com/UKlkbNIRaQ

— Gators Volleyball (@GatorsVB) October 19, 2025
Set 2


A kill from Vidacic put Florida first on the board, but the Gators quickly fell to a 1-4 and called an early timeout at the start of set two. Out of the huddle, Florida responded with a 3-0 scoring run to notch it at up four before an ace from Auguste and a slide attack from Rothe gave the Gators a 9-6 lead and forced a Kentucky timeout. Following the break, Florida went on a 6-3 scoring run, as an ace from Canaan extended the Gators lead to six (15-9) and make the Wildcats use their second timeout of the set. Out of the huddle, Kentucky scored three-straight and inched back within two, but a block from Auguste and Madkin helped kickstart a 3-0 scoring run for a 20-15 advantage. With the race to 25 inching near, a Wildcat service error followed by a Byrd attack made it 22-17, but Kentucky kept the fight and inched back within three before an attack from Rothe sealed the 25-21 second-set win and even the match at 1-1. 
Set 2 Team Stats | .170 Hitting %| 15 Kills | 14 Assists | 19 Digs | 3.0 Blocks | 2 Aces
Kentucky Stats | .140 Hitting %| 12 Kills | 12 Assists | 21 Digs | 3.0 Blocks | 1 Ace

STUCKY PUTS IT DOWN

📺 https://t.co/Ds1jla9pDD (ESPN) pic.twitter.com/mefaSD86bj

— Gators Volleyball (@GatorsVB) October 19, 2025
Set 3


After jumping to a 3-0 lead, a dump from Stucky kickstarted a 4-0 scoring run from the Gators frontline of Auguste, Madkin and Vidacic to extend the lead to five (7-2). Following a Kentucky timeout, the Wildcats strung three-consecutive points to creep back within two, but points from Auguste and Byrd maintained a 13-6 advantage and make Kentucky use its second timeout, where the home team responded with back-to-back points and inch back within five (15-10). Defensive effort from Canaan and Hayes helped the Gators maintain their lead, but back-to-back points from Kentucky forced Florida to call a timeout, still ahead 19-15. Following the break, a Wildcat service error put the Gators first to 20 and kills from Byrd and Rothe secured the 25-19 third-set win and handed Florida a 2-1 match lead.
Set 3 Team Stats | .200 Hitting %| 15 Kills | 14 Assists | 23 Digs | 3.0 Blocks | 0 Aces
Kentucky Stats | .093 Hitting %| 10 Kills | 10 Assists | 17 Digs | 3.0 Blocks | 0 Aces

CRUSHED IT @JaelaAuguste

📺 https://t.co/Ds1jla9pDD (ESPN) pic.twitter.com/eeezlUXgYQ

— Gators Volleyball (@GatorsVB) October 19, 2025
Set 4


A kill and a block from Byrd evened the score at sixes, as Kentucky maintained a one-point lead throughout the start of the fourth set, but a solo block from Madkin followed by a kill from Stucky gave the Gators an 11-10 lead. The Wildcats responded with back-to-back points to regain a one-point lead and went into the media timeout with a 15-14 advantage. Following the break, a kill from Byrd notched it up at 15, as the two conference foes battled point-for-point until Kentucky scored two straight to take a 19-17 lead and force a Florida timeout. Out of the huddle, the Gators fell to a 17-21 deficit and quickly regrouped. With the race to 25 inching near, Florida kept the fight with back-to-back points and inch back within two, but Kentucky was able to come away with a 25-21 victory and force it to five.
Set 4 Team Stats | .263 Hitting %| 15 Kills | 15 Assists | 10 Digs | 4.0 Blocks | 0 Aces
Kentucky Stats | .364 Hitting %| 17 Kills | 17 Assists | 13 Digs | 3.0 Blocks | 2 Aces

tied up pic.twitter.com/kcSmcf0ZOJ

— Gators Volleyball (@GatorsVB) October 19, 2025
Set 5


The Gators called an early timeout after trailing 1-4 at the start of the fifth set. Back-to-back errors from Florida allowed Kentucky to maintain a four-point lead (2-6), but kills from Madkin and Rothe kept the Gators within striking distance, as the teams switched sides with the Wildcats leading 8-5. Attacking errors from Florida handed Kentucky a 10-5 lead and force the Gators to use their second timeout. A set dump from Stucky kept the Gators alive, but the Wildcats came away with a 15-6 fifth-set win.
Set 5 Team Stats | .130 Hitting %| 4 Kills | 4 Assists | 8 Digs | 1.0 Blocks | 0 Aces
Kentucky Stats | .250 Hitting %| 6 Kills | 6 Assists | 9 Digs | 3.0 Blocks | 2 Aces

 

battled til the end pic.twitter.com/lgEa9ER81b

— Gators Volleyball (@GatorsVB) October 19, 2025
Hear from Head Coach Ryan Theis:
“Extremely challenging week. Obviously, you want to end with six set victories and we ended with five total, so disappointing, but really impressed with how this groups continues to compete and continues to try to get better every week.”
 
Notables


The Gators are 3-3 in five-set matches this season
When playing on the road, Florida sits 3-5
The Gators are 1-1 against nationally ranked top-5 teams
The Gators are 4-4 against teams ranked in the AVCA Top-25
When playing on a Sunday, UF is now 6-3
Florida moves to 4-2 in October play
Alexis Stucky recorded her 10th double-double of the season after finishing with 42 assists and 11 digs.
Two players finished with double-digit kills:


Four Gators finished with double-digit digs:

 
Up Next
The Gators return to Gainesville on Wednesday, Oct. 22 for Florida’s blackout match against Oklahoma. First serve is slated for 7 p.m. and will stream on SEC+ with Missy Whittemore and Tom Collett on the call. Fans in attendance are encouraged to wear black.
 
vs. Oklahoma

 
Oklahoma All-Time Series Record 4-0 (0-0 under Theis)
3-set: 2-0; 4-set: 0-0; 5-set: 2-0
Home: 3-0; Away: 1-0; Neutral: 0-0
 
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