Gators Extend Win Streak with Sweep of Vandy

Sunday, March 26

Gainesville, FL

12:00 PM

Florida Gators

#41 Vanderbilt

Elliott Orkin was the first off the court in singles and doubles action.

Gators Extend Win Streak with Sweep of Vandy

Sunday, March 26, 2017 | Men's Tennis

Final Scores (PDF)

Florida posted its first 7-0 shutout since January 21

By: Kelsey Bibik

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Florida won its fourth consecutive dual match and posted its first sweep since January 29 in a 7-0 shutout against Vanderbilt on Sunday afternoon at Linder Stadium at the Ring Tennis Complex.

The Gators went to work early by winning the doubles point. Elliott Orkin and Maxx Lipman were the first off the court with a 6-4 decision over Pen Binet and Panu Virtanen. Just one minute later, UF's fourth-ranked team of Johannes Ingildsen and Alfredo Perez clinched the doubles point with a 7-5 win against Daniel Valent and Panu Virtanen on the showcase court.

Orkin was again the first off the court, this time in singles play as he topped Billy Rowe 6-3, 6-1 on court three in 65 minutes. Chase Perez-Blanco followed with a 6-3, 6-1 score against Baker Newman 6-3, 6-1. Perez-Blanco returned to the No. 2 position in the lineup after playing at No. 3 for the last six matches.

Lipman provided the clinching dual match victory with a 6-4, 6-3 win against Virtanen, as the Gators improved to 5-1 in Southeastern Conference action.

The remaining singles matches were played out and the Gators completed the sweep, their first by a 7-0 score since blanking Kennesaw State on January 21.

Perez posted a 7-5, 6-1 win at the No. 1 position, before Ingildsen notched a 4-6, 6-1, 1-0 victory and Joseph Guillin completed the sweep with a 5-7, 6-2, 1-0 decision in one hour and 33 minutes.

Quoting UF Head Coach Bryan Shelton
On the Gators' shutout of Vanderbilt…
"It feels great, we've been talking about having a solid performance from everybody who takes the court, and I feel like today we had one of those performances that we've been working for. I'm just really proud of how the matches went along, we always talk about trying to play better as the match goes on, and I think the scoreboard was indicative of just that. We continued to play better as the match progressed."

On upperclassmen leading…
"I thought they were great. Elliott [Orkin] has struggled recently in a few matches. After playing one of his best matches against Florida State, he had three tough matches. It's great to see him back where I think he should be - where he really set the tone early in his match today. He got better as he went along and really stayed focused. He concentrated on every single ball and every single point and I just thought it was a really complete performance for him."

What's Next for the Gators