Gibson key in UNC victory over Florida State

Kaylie Gibson’s job is to do the dirty work for the North Carolina volleyball team.

The junior from Apex lurks in the backcourt, diving after powerful spikes hit by opposing team’s outside and middle hitters.

As the team’s first line of defense, Gibson must give up her body to get to balls — her play doesn’t come without sacrifices.

“All the time I get cuts on my elbows and hips,” Gibson said. “If I start bleeding, I just cover it up, it’s no big deal.”

Gibson led a resilient defensive effort for the Tar Heels in their five-set win against No. 14 Florida State Thursday night.

Gibson led all players with 32 digs in the match and anchored a defense that held the Seminoles to a .178 hitting percentage — 33 percent lower than the Seminoles’ .266 hitting percentage average for the year.

The defense also held Florida State to 11.2 kills per set, almost three kills per set lower than its average, which ranks 31st in the country.

Florida State’s tall net attack hit over and blasted through North Carolina’s smaller blockers. Despite the disadvantage, Gibson was able to track down Florida State’s powerful hits and set up the Tar Heels’ offense with accurate passing.

“Gibson was a difference maker tonight,” UNC coach Joe Sagula said. “They took some good swings deep and she just got under the ball.”

“They hit a lot of off-speed stuff, and they were hitting all types of corners. She’s the fastest player on the team, so she’s able to track it down and pick it up”

Gibson said the powerful Seminole offense offered nothing that she hasn’t seen before.

“In practice we actually have some guys come in and our assistant coach hits against us so we get that practice all the time,” Gibson said. “It’s nothing really new.”

Gibson was not only able to get under balls, but also place her passes accurately, something she said is harder when opposing hitters use more power on their kill attempts.

“It’s definitely harder,” Gibson said. “You’ve just got to make sure you get right in front of it. You can’t be reaching for balls, or you’re going to shank them because they’re so hard.”

Gibson’s willingness to give up her body not only propelled the defense to 90 digs on the night, but also was key in leading the Tar Heel offense to 72 kills, compared to 56 for Florida State.

“She put the ball right in a good rhythm for our setters to be able to set the offense,” Sagula said. “I thought the quality of the touch was phenomenal, she was all over the place.

“And every time she had a big dig, we converted in transition to get a point.”

As the shortest player on the team, Gibson leaves the net work to the taller players, effectively removing her from the offensive stat sheet.

But Gibson welcomes the lack of recognition — and the cuts and bruises she gets from the game.

“It comes with the job I guess,” Gibson said.

Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.