Florida leads all SEC schools with four singles players ranked in the top 125.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The Florida Gators women’s tennis team notched four singles rankings and added three doubles pairs in the ITA’s preseason rankings as announced by the organization on Tuesday afternoon. The Gators tally the most ranked singles players in the SEC with four.
Graduate student McCartney Kessler<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_roster.aspx-3Frp-5Fid-3D14474&d=DwIFAg&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=HyL7OA_3mQPZRZM1A8XrhcpAmmoGm6c-KCFZY9oXZvU&s=v4TFHOH-s-LfeXwoZ5JUOznGftop7sdi8We0pDxlsIM&e= > leads the way for the Gators after checking in at No. 4 in the singles rankings. The Calhoun, Georgia native garnered All-American honors in singles and doubles after putting together an impressive 18-3 overall singles record and an 11-6 doubles dual match record. In conference, she went 10-1 to acquire First-Team All-SEC accolades. Kessler won her first-round match in the NCAA Singles Championship against Washington’s Vanessa Wong, while also claiming a doubles victory in the NCAA Doubles Championships with teammate Marlee Zein<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_roster.aspx-3Frp-5Fid-3D14475&d=DwIFAg&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=HyL7OA_3mQPZRZM1A8XrhcpAmmoGm6c-KCFZY9oXZvU&s=4flD17DFjggZ9c6dsNcQvBU6a67ZiucGq9XOysPT-ns&e= > versus Raven Neely and Tatiana Simova of Louisville to advance to the round of 16.
Carly Briggs<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_roster.aspx-3Frp-5Fid-3D14575&d=DwIFAg&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=HyL7OA_3mQPZRZM1A8XrhcpAmmoGm6c-KCFZY9oXZvU&s=NJdUZV6MPdRa60_j6cro_9_ApCU0juHxzAvYLVGNaYQ&e= >, a junior transfer out of Tennessee, is next on the rankings after coming in at No. 41. Briggs was just named to the ITA All-American Championships this fall with a spot in the qualifying singles draw. At Tennessee, she collected 17 singles wins on the season and finished the season ranked No. 62. In the NCAA Singles Championship, she defeated No. 90 Rose Johanson of Virginia to get to the second round of play.
Zein claimed a spot at No. 64, and like Briggs, also earned a place in the ITA All-American Championships. She won 10 singles matches last year, primarily at Court 2, and was a Second-Team All-SEC selection after going 5-3 in conference. Zein, along with Kessler, advanced to the round of 16 at the NCAA Doubles Championships after defeating No. 13-seeded Neely and Simova of Louisville.
Another impact transfer joined the singles rankings as Emma Shelton<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_roster.aspx-3Frp-5Fid-3D14538&d=DwIFAg&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=HyL7OA_3mQPZRZM1A8XrhcpAmmoGm6c-KCFZY9oXZvU&s=EiB0Hbre1_fCXi_HxDqeLNkan4PC_ayyHciVBhAsztc&e= > sits at No. 84. The junior transferred from South Carolina, where she won 13 overall singles matches, primarily at Court 3. Shelton played a big part in helping the Gamecocks to the NCAA Tournament. In doubles, she played the majority of her matches at No. 2 doubles, garnering 10 wins on the season.
On the doubles side, Kessler and Shelton hold the highest ranking for Florida as they check in at No. 23. Zein and freshman Alicia Dudeney<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_roster.aspx-3Frp-5Fid-3D14477&d=DwIFAg&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=HyL7OA_3mQPZRZM1A8XrhcpAmmoGm6c-KCFZY9oXZvU&s=XtybtN3GhjUCurejsCfQd2snxUxuolkVc9zHlwg-his&e= > follow at No. 39, while Briggs and freshman Bente Spee<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__floridagators.com_roster.aspx-3Frp-5Fid-3D14476&d=DwIFAg&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=HyL7OA_3mQPZRZM1A8XrhcpAmmoGm6c-KCFZY9oXZvU&s=mlTFrcgwKfBcIb1KXvSQ7-rd5JV6jYDqEoUNCJOnljM&e= > round out the top 60 with a spot at No. 52. Dudeney has won a couple of doubles championships on the ITF circuit, including the LTU 18U Doubles National Championship this past year. Spee is a five-time national junior champion, winning three singles titles (U12, U14, U18) and two doubles titles (U12, U18).
You can find the full singles<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.wearecollegetennis.com_2021_09_07_ita-2Ddivision-2Di-2Dwomens-2Dsingles-2Drankings-2Dpreseason-2Dtop-2D125_&d=DwIFAg&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=HyL7OA_3mQPZRZM1A8XrhcpAmmoGm6c-KCFZY9oXZvU&s=BEIq5pB2duJ2OkZPq-b0M3PBmjDib_AduGK5Lpj8h0o&e= > and doubles<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.wearecollegetennis.com_2021_09_07_ita-2Ddivision-2Di-2Dwomens-2Ddoubles-2Drankings-2Dpreseason-2Dtop-2D60_&d=DwIFAg&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=HyL7OA_3mQPZRZM1A8XrhcpAmmoGm6c-KCFZY9oXZvU&s=II-MlwVBIqvSjqePoBCzeZ0DhyEdF9u9GWcpRoTztWg&e= > rankings on ITA’s website<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.wearecollegetennis.com_&d=DwIFAg&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=HyL7OA_3mQPZRZM1A8XrhcpAmmoGm6c-KCFZY9oXZvU&s=UptKP4-E4lM2BRMFgNR3Grapnr_lGgXkDnK5NPFryM4&e= >.
