Gators Advance to Semifinals of National Team Indoor Championships

Saturday, February 11

New Haven, CT

3:30 pm ET

Florida Gators

Texas Tech

Senior Belinda Woolcock gave the Gators a 3-1 lead with her singles victory.

Gators Advance to Semifinals of National Team Indoor Championships

Saturday, February 11, 2017 | Women's Tennis

Postmatch Press Conference

Saturday's win was Florida's 50th all-time at the national event.

By: Kathy Cafazzo

NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Head Coach Roland Thornqvist called his Gators' performance a bit of "Jekyll and Hyde" showing and in the end they earned a solid 4-1 win against No. 12 Texas Tech in the quarterfinals of the 2017 ITA National Team Indoor Championships hosted by Yale University on Saturday.

Florida advances to the semifinals where it will play the winner of Saturday's late match between No. 3 Pepperdine and No. 6 Georgia. The semifinals will begin at 3:30 p.m. on Sunday.

The Gators defeated Pepperdine just seven days ago – February 4 – in Malibu, 5-2. Florida and Georgia are Southeastern Conference rivals and schedule to meet March 17 in Gainesville.

For the second consecutive day, Florida found itself in a tough battle on the doubles courts, as the first two matches off split decisions, leaving it up to court No. 1 to decide the initial team point of the dual match.

UF's Brooke Austin and Kourtney Keegan, ranked No. 18, rose to the challenge, rallying for a 7-5 victory against the 23rd-ranked duo of Sabrina Federici and Sarah Dvorak.

From there, freshman Ingrid Neel needed little time to give the Gators a 2-0 lead as she marched past Dvorak, 6-0, 6-4 on court No. 3.

After Texas Tech took the win on court No. 2, senior Belinda Woolcock won a tough match at the No. 1 spot, where the 40^th-ranked Gator downed 15^th-ranked Gabriela Talaba, 6-4, 6-3, and put Florida one singles win away from the dual match victory.

Junior Josie Kuhlman obliged, as she downed Alex Valenstein, 6-3, 6-4, to collected clinching honors and send the Gators into the semifinals.

Saturday's win marked Florida's 50th all-time win at the National Team Indoor Championships, with the Gators sporting a 50-13 record.

Postmatch with UF Head Coach Roland Thornqvist:
"It was a bit of a Jekyll and Hyde match for us. We played great at No. 2 doubles and started off super slow at one doubles, but was able to turn it around. We had some of the same in singles, where a couple courts started off really well and a couple of courts it took us a while to warm up. The good thing about this squad is that we don't seem to panic. We keep our poise and keep plugging away. It seems we get a little bit tougher and a little bit stronger with every 30 minutes that goes by. I was pleased at the end that we were able to win 4-1.

"Our resiliency really stood out today. Belinda (Woolcock) was really good. She was determined and held onto the ball great. Ingrid (Neel) and Josie (Kuhlman) were super efficient. On courts five and six we were in big holes and we were able to turn it around. Overall, I was pleased. Texas Tech was a really tough team. They are great competitors so I was super happy with the win."

Florida at the National Indoor

This is Florida's 17th all-time appearance in the national event, but just its second in the last six years.
The Gators have won the championship six times, with the last title coming in 1998-99. Since that year, Florida has competed in the event just five times.
The last time the Gators were at the NTIC was in 2014-15 and the squad reached the semifinals.

Following the Action

For updated draws, results, live scoring and video, daily video highlights and photo galleries, head to the Division I Women's National Indoors event page.
On social media, be sure to follow @ITA_Tennis on Twitter and Instagram and use the hashtag #ITAIndoors to join the conversation.
FloTennis will be on site providing live streaming coverage of all four days of competition. FloTennis is a subscription-based service with monthly and annual rate options. To sign up and view the live stream, click here.

Quick Overview

The ITA Division I National Women's Team Indoor Championship is in its 30th year of existence.
Fifteen teams qualified for the event by winning their respective 2017 ITA Kick-Off Weekend four-team regional, while Yale received an automatic bid as the host site.
The teams will compete in a single-elimination tournament over a four-day span to crown a national indoor champion.
Each team is guaranteed three matches at the event.

What's Next for the Gators

Who: Florida vs. Pepperdine or Georgia
Where: Yale's Cullman-Heyman Tennis Center * New Haven, Conn.
When: Sunday, February 12 * 3:30 p.m. ET
What: Semifinals of the ITA National Team Indoor Championships
Of Note: Florida is 3-0 all-time against Pepperdine in the National Team Indoor Championships; 1-1 against Georgia

2017 ITA National Team Indoor Championships – Quarterfinals
Cullman-Heyman Tennis Center * New Haven, CT
Saturday, February 11, 2017

No. 1 Florida vs. No. 12 Texas Tech

Final Score: Florida d. Texas Tech, 4-1

Singles
1. Belinda Woolcock (40), UF d. Gabriela Talaba (15), TTU 6-4, 6-3
2. Felicity Maltby (116), TTU d. Anna Danilina (23), UF 6-2, 6-4
3. Ingrid Neel (45), UF d. Sarah Dvorak, TTU 6-0, 6-4
4. Josie Kuhlman (19), UF d. Alex Valenstein, TTU 6-3, 6-4*
5. Brooke Austin, UF vs. Sabrina Federici, TTU 7-6 (6), 3-4 DNF
6. Spencer Liang (41), UF vs. Katelyn Jackson, TTU 1-6, 6-1, 2-3 DNF

Doubles
1. Brooke Austin/Kourtney Keegan (18), UF d. S. Federici/S. Dvorak (23), TTU 7-5*
2. Anna Danilina/Ingrid Neel (22), UF d. L. Kiro/A. Valenstein, TTU, 6-0
3. F. Maltby/G. Talaba, TTU d. Belinda Woolcock/Josie Kuhlman (17), UF, 7-5

Order of Finish: D – 2, 3, 1*; S – 3, 2, 1, 4*
Team Ranking: Florida – 1; Texas Tech – 12
Updated Records: Florida 5-0; Texas Tech 4-2

Complete Team Results – Quarterfinals
(1) Florida d. Texas Tech, 4-1
(4) Pepperdine vs. (5) Georgia – late start
(6) Ohio State d. (4) Oklahoma State, 4-3
(2) North Carolina d. (7) California, 4-2

Gator Pronunciations