Notebook: SEC track championships return to UF

One of the premier Southeastern Conference sporting events is returning to Gainesville.

The 2009 SEC Outdoor Track & Field championships will be hosted by UF on May 14-17 at the Percy Beard Track. It is the first time since 1998 the Gators have hosted the event. Coach Mike Holloway is proud to have the event return to Gainesvillle, especially at a time when he feels his team will be able to compete for a championship.

"I'm very excited about hosting the SEC Championships," Holloway said. "We have a very competitive team this year and one that I think could challenge for some titles. Being home and sleeping in our own beds with our own fans here is a big deal. There's nothing like the SEC Championships. Anybody who wants to see the best in track and field in all aspects should come."

It is somewhat of a rare event. Florida has hosted the SEC Outdoors in 1960, 1970, 1974, 1989 and 1998.

Jaeckel named SEC freshman of week

Gator volleyball redshirt freshman Kristy Jaeckel was named the SEC's freshman of the week on Tuesday.

Jaeckel was named the MVP of the Aquafina Invitational last weekend. Jaeckel hit .786 on Saturday against Pacific, the third-highest hitting percentage in school history in the rally-scoring era.

Volleyball adjusts to new 25-point sets

It was interesting to once again be reminded how great the volleyball fans in Gainesville are during Florida's season-opener Friday night in the O'Connell Center. When the Gators reached 24 points in the first set, the crowd of more than 2,800 instantly rose to its feet to cheer on set point. This was pretty fascinating since it was the first match since the NCAA reduced the number of points needed to win a set from 30 to 25 in the offseason.

Looks like Florida fans have been paying attention. The players have, too. The rules change seems to have brought about quicker, more intense sets.

"These games go by so fast," Florida's Elyse Cusack said. "You give up a couple points and you're down, and it's hard to make that up because it's only to 25. We can't ever take any point off and we did that a couple times tonight, but luckily we were still able to come out on top. The 25-point sets changes everything. It's a lot more competitive now."

It has certainly made the matches a little more dramatic.