Friday, January 6
Plantation, FL
TBA
Florida Gators
vs
Future - Day 1
Senior Captain Elliott Orkin and sophomore McClain Kessler are both moving on in the USA F3 Futures tournament (Photo: Tim Casey / UAA Communications)
Gators impress at first pro tournament of 2017
Friday, January 6, 2017 | Men's Tennis
PLANTATION, Fla. – The Florida men's tennis team started off the 2017 season the exact way they wanted to. Eight Gators competing in the USA F3 Futures pro tournament are moving on from the first qualifying round. After a tough first day, the team is ready to focus on the rest of the tournament as a way to prepare for their challenging upcoming season.
Team captain Elliott Orkin earned the quickest win of the day for the Gators, defeating Brazil's Matheus Aquino in a double-bagel win to advance to the second qualifying round. Chase Perez-Blanco followed close behind, defeating USA's Aron Pierce 6-2, 6-1.
A newcomer to collegiate competition, freshmen Johannes Ingildsen and Stephen Madonia each picked up a win, with Ingildsen defeating Yale's Andrew Heller in a close three-set match, and Madonia toppled
The team is looking to consolidate an impressive 2015-16 season, where they picked up an SEC Tournament title, advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament, and earned the best record of Head Coach Bryan Shelton's career at Florida.
The eight Gators moving on in the tournament will compete in the second qualifying round Saturday morning. Ingildsen and Maxx Lipman will start off the competition at 11:00 am against France's Luke Pavlovic and Russia's Evgeny Korolev, respectively.
Quoting Head Coach Bryan Shelton
On the first day of Futures…
"Our guys competed well today. We didn't play our best tennis everywhere, but I liked out attitude and mindsets on the court. I'm glad we won most of our matches, so we can get back out there again tomorrow. We got exactly what we needed today and I can tell our guys are hungry and excited for this season."
On what this tournament means for the team…
"This is the best time of the year for our team and for the guys. It's the most exciting time because all of a sudden we're playing as a team. In the fall, you're playing all these individual events and playing singles and doubles but you're not really playing in the team format, and the team format is so exciting. For us, it's getting ready over these next few weeks so that when we open up against Georgia Southern on the 21st the guys are sharp and feeling good about their game.
On how this season will be different…
"Last year we won the SEC Tournament title at South Carolina, so I think we want to be able to build on that success this year. We've got a lot of young guys that are going to take on new roles this year for us, and they're going to have to step up. So it's always fun and exciting as a coach to see the guys step up into those new roles and to continue to develop as this season goes along."
Tournament Information
ITF Pro Circuit – USA F3 Futures
Plantation, Fla.
Qualifying: Jan. 6-9, 2017; Main Draw: Jan. 10-15, 2017
Frank Veltri Tennis Center at Plantation Central Park
Website
UF Results
McClain Kessler (UF) (USA) def. Jordan Nickerson (USA), 6-3, 6-4
Johannes Ingildsen (UF) (DEN) def. Andrew Heller (USA), 6-2, 4-6, 6-4
Maxx Lipman (UF) (USA) def. Cesar Antonio Gomez Diaz (MEX), 6-4, 6-1
Chase Perez-Blanco (UF) (USA) def. Aron Pierce (USA), 6-2, 6-1
Christopher Grant (USA) def. Joseph Guillin (UF) (FRA), 6-2, 4-6, 6-2
Elliott Orkin (UF) (USA) def. Matheus Aquino (BRA), 6-0, 6-0
Stephen Madonia (UF) (USA) def. Pablo Landa Catan (MEX), 6-3, 6-3
Jordan Belga (UF) (USA) def. Gabriel Ciro Da Silva (BRA), 3-6, 6-4, 6-4
Alfredo Perez (UF) (USA) def. Erroll Lawrence (USA), 6-2, 6-3
Draws and Order of Events – Saturday, January 7th
Stephen Madonia (USA) vs. Jonathan Chang (USA) – Not before 12:30 pm
Jordan Belga (USA) vs. Govind Nanda (USA) – Not before 1:30 pm
McClain Kessler (USA) vs. Tomislav Jotovski (MKD) – Not before 12 pm
Alfredo Perez (USA) vs. Vuk Budic (USA) – Not before 1:30 pm
Johannes Ingildsen (DEN) vs. Luke Pavlovic (FRA) – 11:00 am
Maxx Lipman (USA) vs. Evgeny Korolev (RUS) – 11:00 am
Chase Perez-Blanco (USA) vs. John Harrison Richmond (USA) – Not before 12 pm
Elliott Orkin (USA) vs. Pietro Rimondini (USA) – Not before 12 pm
Future Gators
Class of 2018 signee Andres Andrade was bumped up from the list of alternates to play in the first qualifying round, where he defeated Sebastian Zeballos (USA) in a double bagel win. He will play USA's Brain Battistone Saturday morning in the second qualifying round.
About the ITF Pro Circuit
The ITF Men's Circuit provides the entry level of Professional Tournaments enabling players to eventually reach the higher level tournaments on the ATP World Tour.
The ITF Men's Circuit offers 600+ tournaments across 70+ countries and incorporates two prize money levels of tournaments known as 'Futures'.
Futures Tournaments are single week tournaments that offer either $15,000 or $25,000 each in prize money. They must be scheduled as three consecutive weeks of $15,000 each in prize money or two consecutive weeks of $25,000 each in prize money.
Follow the Gators
Join the conversation: Tweet #GoGators
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FloridaGators.com
Team captain Elliott Orkin earned the quickest win of the day for the Gators, defeating Brazil's Matheus Aquino in a double-bagel win to advance to the second qualifying round. Chase Perez-Blanco followed close behind, defeating USA's Aron Pierce 6-2, 6-1.
A newcomer to collegiate competition, freshmen Johannes Ingildsen and Stephen Madonia each picked up a win, with Ingildsen defeating Yale's Andrew Heller in a close three-set match, and Madonia toppled
The team is looking to consolidate an impressive 2015-16 season, where they picked up an SEC Tournament title, advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament, and earned the best record of Head Coach Bryan Shelton's career at Florida.
The eight Gators moving on in the tournament will compete in the second qualifying round Saturday morning. Ingildsen and Maxx Lipman will start off the competition at 11:00 am against France's Luke Pavlovic and Russia's Evgeny Korolev, respectively.
Quoting Head Coach Bryan Shelton
On the first day of Futures…
"Our guys competed well today. We didn't play our best tennis everywhere, but I liked out attitude and mindsets on the court. I'm glad we won most of our matches, so we can get back out there again tomorrow. We got exactly what we needed today and I can tell our guys are hungry and excited for this season."
On what this tournament means for the team…
"This is the best time of the year for our team and for the guys. It's the most exciting time because all of a sudden we're playing as a team. In the fall, you're playing all these individual events and playing singles and doubles but you're not really playing in the team format, and the team format is so exciting. For us, it's getting ready over these next few weeks so that when we open up against Georgia Southern on the 21st the guys are sharp and feeling good about their game.
On how this season will be different…
"Last year we won the SEC Tournament title at South Carolina, so I think we want to be able to build on that success this year. We've got a lot of young guys that are going to take on new roles this year for us, and they're going to have to step up. So it's always fun and exciting as a coach to see the guys step up into those new roles and to continue to develop as this season goes along."
Tournament Information
ITF Pro Circuit – USA F3 Futures
Plantation, Fla.
Qualifying: Jan. 6-9, 2017; Main Draw: Jan. 10-15, 2017
Frank Veltri Tennis Center at Plantation Central Park
Website
UF Results
McClain Kessler (UF) (USA) def. Jordan Nickerson (USA), 6-3, 6-4
Johannes Ingildsen (UF) (DEN) def. Andrew Heller (USA), 6-2, 4-6, 6-4
Maxx Lipman (UF) (USA) def. Cesar Antonio Gomez Diaz (MEX), 6-4, 6-1
Chase Perez-Blanco (UF) (USA) def. Aron Pierce (USA), 6-2, 6-1
Christopher Grant (USA) def. Joseph Guillin (UF) (FRA), 6-2, 4-6, 6-2
Elliott Orkin (UF) (USA) def. Matheus Aquino (BRA), 6-0, 6-0
Stephen Madonia (UF) (USA) def. Pablo Landa Catan (MEX), 6-3, 6-3
Jordan Belga (UF) (USA) def. Gabriel Ciro Da Silva (BRA), 3-6, 6-4, 6-4
Alfredo Perez (UF) (USA) def. Erroll Lawrence (USA), 6-2, 6-3
Draws and Order of Events – Saturday, January 7th
Stephen Madonia (USA) vs. Jonathan Chang (USA) – Not before 12:30 pm
Jordan Belga (USA) vs. Govind Nanda (USA) – Not before 1:30 pm
McClain Kessler (USA) vs. Tomislav Jotovski (MKD) – Not before 12 pm
Alfredo Perez (USA) vs. Vuk Budic (USA) – Not before 1:30 pm
Johannes Ingildsen (DEN) vs. Luke Pavlovic (FRA) – 11:00 am
Maxx Lipman (USA) vs. Evgeny Korolev (RUS) – 11:00 am
Chase Perez-Blanco (USA) vs. John Harrison Richmond (USA) – Not before 12 pm
Elliott Orkin (USA) vs. Pietro Rimondini (USA) – Not before 12 pm
Future Gators
Class of 2018 signee Andres Andrade was bumped up from the list of alternates to play in the first qualifying round, where he defeated Sebastian Zeballos (USA) in a double bagel win. He will play USA's Brain Battistone Saturday morning in the second qualifying round.
About the ITF Pro Circuit
The ITF Men's Circuit provides the entry level of Professional Tournaments enabling players to eventually reach the higher level tournaments on the ATP World Tour.
The ITF Men's Circuit offers 600+ tournaments across 70+ countries and incorporates two prize money levels of tournaments known as 'Futures'.
Futures Tournaments are single week tournaments that offer either $15,000 or $25,000 each in prize money. They must be scheduled as three consecutive weeks of $15,000 each in prize money or two consecutive weeks of $25,000 each in prize money.
Follow the Gators
Join the conversation: Tweet #GoGators
Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
FloridaGators.com
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