Gators advance to face off against Georgia Tech in the Gainesville Regional Final tomorrow
GAINESVILLE, Fla. -No. 16 Florida women’s tennis made quick work Friday afternoon, shutting out No. 75 North Florida 4-0 inside Linder Stadium at the Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex.
The Gators advance to the second round, and will square off against No. 19 Georgia Tech for a 1 p.m. ET first serve on Saturday afternoon.
The Gators controlled most of the match, getting stronger as the time went on.
At No. 2 doubles, the 67th nationally ranked pairing of Carly Briggs/Rachel Gailis stormed to a lead, never trailing in the match to win 6-1 over Kendall Nash/Isabel Oliveira.
Alicia Dudeney/Bente Spee, No. 21 in the latest Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings, clinched the early point for the Gators. After trailing early and then in a 3-3 lock, the Florida duo closed with a 3-0 run to clinch their 16th doubles point of the season.
Florida continued their momentum into singles play, winning the first set on all six courts.
Briggs opened up the singles scoring for the Gators, dominating at No. 2 singles 6-1, 6-1 for her 10th singles win of the spring.
Seconds later, Emily De Oliveira took court five 6-0, 6-2. The sophomore from Bradenton jolted out to a quick start at No. 5 singles en route to her 14th dual singles win.
Gailis clinched the NCAA tournament victory for Florida with a 6-2, 6-1 performance at No. 4 singles. The freshman notched her ninth straight singles win, and is tied for the team lead at 15 dual singles wins.
Sara Dahlstrom, ranked No. 17 in the nation, came up a game short of winning her match in straight sets. The junior from Sweden was up 6-1, 5-2 when the match was finished.
After falling behind early in her No. 6 singles match, Spee fought back in her first set, taking the lead 4-3 before winning the set 6-4. Spee was tied 1-1 when the match was concluded. At No. 3 singles, Dudeney was rolling at 6-3, 4-1 when Florida clinched the postseason victory.
Florida will look to advance to continue their postseason success tomorrow at 1 p.m. ET when the Gators face off against Georgia Tech in the second round of the 2023 NCAA Tournament.
Tickets can be purchased at the gate for the match – $7 for adults, $4 for senior citizens, college students, and children under 12 – or by clicking here<https://am.ticketmaster.com/gators/NCAATENNISGAINESVILLE>. All UAA employee and UF students get in free.
Gates will open for fans one hour prior to the start of the match. Please note that seating is on a first come, first served basis and saving of seats is not permitted.
The Gainesville Regional Championship match will also be streamed on FloridaGators.com<https://floridagators.com/sports/2018/3/9/tennis-women-live-video-stats.aspx>.
QUOTES FROM THE COURT
Head Coach Roland Thornqvist
On the match…
“I was pleased with how we played in our doubles. We looked really aggressive and confident. We were hitting our serves and were very aggressive at net. All those things that we’ve been trying to instill in our players really seemed to be on all three courts really taking shape, which is cool to see. I was walking up and down the singles courts, and feel really proud of our players. I’ve said all along this year that this team has done some of the best work this spring that we’ve had. It’s been 10 years since we’ve had work like this group has put together. Although being super professional in your work doesn’t always guarantee success, but one thing it will do is show growth. When I was walking up and down the singles matches, I was so pleased to see that we just showed growth in every spot. This team has worked really, really hard, and I’m happy for them that they are playing their best tennis at the end of the year.”
On the upcoming match against Georgia Tech…
“Georgia Tech is really good. You saw today they didn’t flinch when they lost the doubles point. That was pretty impressive. They just started mowing down UCF. They have some players who can extend rallies, so we have to be smart in our play and not try to overplay. We need to take our opportunities when they come. Also need to rely on our fitness. I’m hoping it’ll be even hotter tomorrow, and perhaps that could be a small advantage for the Gators. It’s going to be a close match. maybe 4-3, 4-2 match, so you have to pay attention to all your little details. Rodney (Harmon) is just a world class guy. His players play with integrity and intensity. I’m looking forward to it, it’ll be a fun match. Two classy teams will battle it out tomorrow.”
Doubles Results
1. #21 Alicia Dudeney/Bente Spee (UF) def. Kit Gulihur/Ana Paula Melilo (UNF) 6-3
2. #67 Carly Briggs/Rachel Gailis (UF) def. Kendall Nash/Isabel Oliveira (UNF) 6-1
3. Emma Shelton/Sophie Williams (UF) vs. Annabelle Davis/Jasmin Makela (UNF) 5-4, unfinished
Order of Finish: 2,1
Singles Results
1. #17 Sara Dahlstrom (UF) vs. #86 Kit Gulihur (UNF) 6-1, 5-2, unfinished
2. #45 Carly Briggs (UF) def. Annabelle Davis (UNF) 6-1, 6-1
3. #99 Alicia Dudeney (UF) vs. Isabel Oliveira (UNF) 6-3, 4-1, unfinished
4. Rachel Gailis (UF) def. Ana Paula Melilo (UNF) 6-2, 6-1
5. Emily de Oliveira (UF) def. Kendall Nash (UNF) 6-0, 6-2
6. Bente Spee (UF) vs. Jasmin Makela (UNF) 6-4, 1-1, unfinished
Order of Finish: 2,5,4
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