Florida faces their second loss of the spring to Stanford on the road in Seattle. The Gators fell 4-0 to the No. 2 ranked team and will continue into the consolation round Saturday at ITA National Indoors.
SEATTLE, Wash. – The Gators were drawn No. 2 ranked Stanford in the first round of ITA National Indoors. The contest proved to be a challenge with Florida dropping 4-0 and falling out of the championship bracket.
On the doubles side, Qavia Lopez and Malwina Rowinska were the first Florida duo to face adversity against Stanford. The freshman pair came in with a strong mindset after winning their most recent match in Michigan, but they were unable to get it done against Connie Ma and Alexandra Yepifanova, falling 6-2.
Carly Briggs and Rachel Gailis were up next for the Gators playing Katherine Hui and Valencia Xu. The doubles match was a back-and-forth battle between the Cardinal and Gators’ but Stanford pulled ahead in the final games to edge Florida 6-4 and take the double’s point. Alicia Dudeney and Bente Spee were ahead 5-4 against the 56th-ranked Angelica Blake and Alexis Blokhina before the double’s point was awarded to Stanford.
In the singles category, Florida dropped the first three matches to solidify Stanford’s victory. Rachel Gailis faced off against No.12 Connie Ma and came up short 6-3, 6-2, Alexandra Yepifanova shut out Emily De Oliveira in a 6-0, 6-2 effort, and Carly Briggs matched up against Angelica Blake and fell 6-1, 6-2. The remaining three matches went unfinished, however, both Alicia Dudeney and Qavia Lopez were able to secure a set over their respective opponents and Malwina Rowinska was on the way at 5-3 in the second set. Although the Gators were unable to hang on in Friday’s contest against No. 2 Stanford they remain optimistic as to what the future season holds.
HEAD COACH ROLAND THORNQVIST SAID:
“A lot of credit to Stanford. I thought they were very impressive at the top. We’re still trying to find our way indoors, still a little tentative on short balls but we’re here this weekend to get exposure to the top 5 teams to see what we need to be there at the end of May. We will be better for every match.”
Singles: (Order of Finish: 3, 1, 2)
1. Angelica Blake (STANF) def. Carly Briggs (UF) 6-1, 6-2
2. Connie Ma (STANF) def. Rachel Gailis (UF) 6-3, 6-2
3. Alexandra Yepifanova (STANF) def. Emily de Oliveira (UF) 6-0, 6-2
4. Alicia Dudeney (UF) vs. Alexis Blokhina (STANF) 6-4, 4-4, unfinished
5. Qavia Lopez (UF) vs. Katherine Hui (STANF) 4-6, 6-2, unfinished
6. Malwina Rowinska (UF) vs. Valencia Xu (STANF) 2-6, 5-3, unfinished
Doubles: (Order of Finish: 2, 3)
1. Alicia Dudeney/Bente Spee (UF) vs. Angelica Blake/Alexis Blokhina (STANF) 5-4, unfinished
2. Connie Ma/Alexandra Yepifanova (STANF) def. Qavia Lopez/Malwina Rowinska (UF) 6-2
3. Katherine Hui/Valencia Xu (STANF) def. Carly Briggs/Rachel Gailis (UF) 6-4
NEXT UP:
The Gators’ next contest will be on Saturday in the consolation bracket for the ITA National Indoor Championships. Their next opponent is yet to be announced and is dependent on the remaining Friday matchups. Below are the possible time slots and viewing information:
* 9:00 AM PST – TBD vs. TBD (Site TBD)
* Live Video | Live Stats<https://www.ioncourt.com/leagues/2024-ita-division-i-womens-team-indoors>
* 12:00 PM PST – TBD vs. TBD (STC)
* Live Video<https://web.track.tennis/index.html#/@8e877ccb-f14f-478c-a634-dc5c799a21e2/@8e877ccb-f14f-478c-a634-dc5c799a21e2/evt-3Jc8_jxs00c> | Live Stats<https://www.ioncourt.com/leagues/2024-ita-division-i-womens-team-indoors>
* 3:30 PM PST – TBD vs. TBD (Site TBD)
* Live Video | Live Stats<https://www.ioncourt.com/leagues/2024-ita-division-i-womens-team-indoors>
* 6:30 PM PST – TBD vs. TBD (STC)
* Live Video<https://web.track.tennis/index.html#/@8e877ccb-f14f-478c-a634-dc5c799a21e2/@8e877ccb-f14f-478c-a634-dc5c799a21e2/evt-3Jc8_jxs00c> | Live Stats<https://www.ioncourt.com/leagues/2024-ita-division-i-womens-team-indoors>
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