Florida Gators
UCLA
Men?s Tennis Set For National Title Showdown
Saturday, February 22, 2003 | Men's Tennis
The sixth-ranked University of Florida men's tennis team came up with its biggest win to date this season as the Gators upset No. 1 ranked UCLA, 4-1, in the semifinals of the USTA/ITA National Men's Team Indoor Championships on Saturday afternoon in Louisville. The Gators, who have reached the finals for the first time in school history, now await the winner of Baylor/Illinois who are matched in the other semifinal. Sunday's national championship match will begin at 1 p.m. CT.
With the win, the Gators have won six straight to bring their record to 9-1 on the season. Florida also began last season with a 9-1 record marking the program's best 10-match start since opening the 1991 season with an identical record. Today's win marks the 12th time in school history the Gators have begun the season in such fashion.
The loss was the first for UCLA this season as the Bruins fell to 11-1. The outcome of the match also guaranteed this year's champion will be the first other than UCLA or Stanford since 1989 and the first champ from outside the state of California since 1983. The Bruins, which had won four of the last seven titles at this tournaments and six since 1991, knocked Florida out of the NCAA Round of 16 last May (4-0).
"Obviously, UCLA is the best or one of the best teams this year and I thought so last year too," said UF head coach Andy Jackson. "Even though we are maybe not as good, I thought we might have backed down (in last year's NCAA round of 16). We knew if they got ahead today we couldn't back down again. We just played real good and it came from saying 'Okay they have to beat us even though they're so good.'"
Florida defeated 13th-ranked Southern California, 4-0, on Thursday to earn its spot in the quarterfinals, which was its previous deepest run in the tournament (2000, 2001). In the quarterfinal round, the Gators met up with fourth-ranked California and defeated the Bears, 4-2.
Seniors Matt Behrmann and Troy Hahn (13th) clinched the doubles point for the Gators at No. 3 and are 3-0 on the week in this spot. Behrmann and Hahn teamed to defeat Erfan Djahangiri and Alberto Franics, 8-4. The 37th-ranked Florida tandem of Olivier Levant and Eleazar Magallan put the Gators in position go up 1-0 with their 8-2 win over Tobias Clemens and Lassi Ketola on court two.
"(Winning) doubles was very critical and we played better today than we did yesterday (against California)," Jackson said. "It gave our guys some confidence that if we didn't back down, then maybe some good things would happen."
The carry over into singles Jackson was looking for came as Behrmann and classmate Eleazar Magallan put Florida up 3-0 in the singles before UCLA was able to get on the board. Magallan, ranked 78th, took a 6-3, 6-3 decision at six over Franics, while Behrmann also won in straight sets on five with a 6-7, 7-5 decision against Lass Ketola.
For the third day in a row Janne Holmia (29trh) clinched the victory for Florida. Holmia is 3-0 for the tournament and leads the team with a 9-1 dual record. After dropping the first set, 6-2, to Marcin Matkowski, Holmia battled back with scores of 6-2, 6-3. In all, half of Holmia's ten dual matches this season have needed a third set as the freshman is 4-1 in those situations.
Born in Oneida, KY, Jackson led Florida into his home state where he starred on the Franklin Country High School basketball and tennis teams in the late seventies and later played tennis at the University of Kentucky, where he served as team captain for the Wildcats in 1984. Jackson also took Mississippi State to three USTA/ITA semis in the 1990s (1994, 95, 98 – lost 4-3 in two of those). Jackson's family and parents were on hand for today's match.
"For me to have my mom and dad and my family here means a lot. There were a lot of times with Mississippi State that we came close to making the final and sometimes we were the better team. It means a lot to me to get to play tomorrow."
In the 28-year history of the event, Florida has made eight appearances and owns a 9-15 record.
The trip to the finals bodes well for the Gators. The USTA/ITA, which began in 1973, and is the ITA's longest-running event, typically serves as an early-season indicator as to who will claim the NCAA title in May. On eight occasions, the team that won the USTA/ITA title went on to win the NCAA Championship. There have been four times where the USTA/ITA runner-up went on to win the NCAAs.
The Gators have played Illinois head-to-head earlier this season. Florida made the trip to Champaign, Ill., on Saturday, Feb. 1, where they were handed their only loss of the season, 7-0.
NCAA Men's Tennis
Florida 4, UCLA 1
Doubles
No. 1 Hamid Mirzadeh/Chris McDonald (UF) vs. Rodrigo Grilli/Marcin Matkowski (UCLA), DNF
No. 2 #37 Olivier Levant/Eleazar Magallan (UF) def. Tobias Clemens/Lassi Ketola (UCLA), 8-2
No. 3 #13 Matt Behrmann/Troy Hahn (UF) def. Erfan Djahangiri/Alberto Francis (UCLA), 8-4
Singles
No. 1 Hamid Mirzadeh (UF) vs. #12 Tobias Clemens (UCLA), DNF
No. 2 #29 Janne Holmia (UF) def. Marcin Matkowski (UCLA), 2-6, 6-2, 6-3
No. 3 Rodrigo Grilli (UCLA) def. Troy Hahn (UF), 4-6, 6-3, 6-4
No. 4 #68 Olivier Levant (UF) def. Erfan Djahangiri (UCLA), DNF
No. 5 #117 Matt Behrmann (UF) def. Lassi Ketola (UCLA), 6-4, 7-5
No. 6 #T78 Eleazar Magallan (UF) def. Alberto Francis (UCLA), 6-3, 6-3
Numbers preceding names indicate current national rankings
