GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The Florida women’s tennis team concludes the regular season this weekend on the road for two matchups in the state Alabama.
Friday’s match at Alabama in Tuscaloosa is slated to begin at 4 p.m. ET while Sunday’s match at Auburn is set for 1 p.m. ET.
THE SERIES VS. ALABAMA
Florida and Alabama will be meeting for the 48th time in program history on Friday afternoon, with the Gators holding a remarkable 45-2 mark against the Crimson Tide. Last season, UF took down Alabama 4-0 in Gainesville on April 8, 2022.
THE SERIES VS. AUBURN
The Gators and Tigers will meet for the 47th time on Sunday, with Florida holding an impressive 44-2 record against Auburn. The Orange & Blue are 23-1 all-time in Auburn, but dropped last year’s matchup 1-6 to the Tigers at the Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex.
ROAD WARRIORS
The Gators have posted five wins in away matches so far this spring. Florida has downed South Florida, Baylor, South Carolina, Mississippi State and Ole Miss all away from the home courts.
COUNTING DOWN
Between singles and doubles play, Alicia Dudeney has collected 94 victories during her two seasons with the Gators. The countdown is on for the sophomore, as she’s just six wins away from becoming the 54th member of the 100-win club in Florida women’s tennis history.
ITA RANKINGS
In the latest ITA Rankings, the Gators find themselves ranked No. 17 as a team. Individually, Sara Dahlstrom stayed put at No. 37, while Carly Briggs climbed to No. 38. Dudeney stayed ranked in the singles rankings, slotting in at No. 96. The doubles tandem of Dudeney and Bente Spee ascended up the rankings, moving in at No. 49. Briggs and Rachel Gailis also moved up in this week’s rankings, coming in at No. 74.
SEC STRONG
The SEC is one of the top conferences in collegiate tennis, with 11 teams finding themselves in the latest top-75 rankings from the Intercollegiate Tennis Association, and nine in the top-52. Among the Power Five conferences, the SEC’s 11 ranked-teams are tied for second with the Big 10 and behind the ACC who has 12. The Pac 12 has ten teams ranked, while the Big 12 finds eight teams ranked, respectively.
FIVE RANKED W’S
Florida has posted five ranked wins this season, all in the top-54 of the ITA rankings. The Gators knocked off No. 3 Michigan, No. 23 Vanderbilt, No. 34 LSU and No. 54 Arkansas at home, while beating No. 32 South Carolina on the road.
HOME COOKING
The Gators recorded back-to-back home victories over Missouri and Arkansas two weeks ago. Florida posted its second 7-0 sweep of the season against Missouri, while finishing the home slate with a 5-2 win over Arkansas on Senior Day.
TOP-THREE TRIUMPH
Florida earned their biggest win since the 2017 season on March 22, taking down No. 3 Michigan inside Linder Stadium, 4-1. After claiming the doubles point, Sara Dahlstrom (one singles), Alicia Dudeney (three singles) and Emily De Oliveira (five singles) were dominant in singles to secure the 4-1 victory, with each taking down a nationally-ranked opponent. The win is the Gators first over a top-five opponent since April 7, 2018 when they took down No. 5 South Carolina, 4-2, in Columbia. Additionally, it’s their first over a top-three opponent since March 14, 2017, when they defeated No. 2 Ohio State, 4-1.
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