Florida Gators
ITA All-Am. Championships
W-Tennis Continues Success at Riviera/ITA All-American
Friday, October 8, 2004 | Women's Tennis
University of Florida senior Zerene Reyes won her third consecutive three-plus hour singles match advancing to the second round of the Riviera/ITA All-American Women's Tennis Championships. Also enjoying success Thursday at the Riviera Tennis Club were the Gator doubles teams of Whitney Benik and Lolita Frangulyan, as well as the tandem of Jennifer Magley and Reyes, as both reached the round of eight.
Reyes, who played her way into the main draw of the national event after winning three matches in the qualifying event, was scheduled to face third-ranked Jelena Pandzic of Fresno State in the first round. However, Pandzic withdrew and her replacement in the field was Harvard's 27th-ranked Courtney Bergman, the same player Reyes battled for three hours in the final round of Qualifying less than 24 hours prior to Thursday's encounter. This first round contest took even longer to decide, with Reyes taking the three hour and 35 minute marathon thriller 7-5, 2-6, 7-5.
"She just continues to fight and hang in there, it's been amazing to watch," UF associate head coach Dave Balogh said. "She's played over 12 hours of tennis over the last two days. I'm just so proud of her fight and will to win. I hope she has a little more gas in her tank for tomorrow's match."
Gator junior Jennifer Magley, ranked 12th in the country, played Audra Cohen of Northwestern in the first round of singles and dropped a marathon match of her own, falling 4-6, 6-3, 6-4. Magley next plays Northwestern's Alexis Prousis in the consolation draw Friday morning.
"If Jennifer competes the way she did today, she will lead this team," Balogh said. "She was so composed throughout her match, even if it didn't end the way she would have liked. Audra just came up with amazing shots when she needed them. I think today's match really could be a huge breakthrough for Jennifer and her leadership of our team. I was so proud of the way she played."
Three of the 16 teams in the doubles field were UF tandems, and the Gators made the most of their appearance in the main draw as two teams won and advanced to the quarterfinals.
The freshmen duo of Whitney Benik and Lolita Frangulyan were playing their eight doubles match in six days but didn't show signs of fatigue, upsetting ninth-ranked Cristelle Grier and Alexis Prousis of Northwestern 8-5. Benik and Frangulyan, who now have defeated three consecutive nationally ranked opponents, marched into the main draw after winning their way through the Pre-Qualifying and Qualifying rounds.
UF's veteran team of Jennifer Magley and Zerene Reyes, ranked 12th in the country, downed Clemson's 21st-ranked pair of Daniela Alvarez and Maria Brito 8-6 to advance to the second round and face Texas' 19th-ranked team of Katie Ruckert and Kendra Strohm.
Due to the withdraw of the fourth-seeded doubles team from Pepperdine, UF's Boglarka Berecz and Nina Suvak were slotted into the main draw as "lucky losers," having lost a tough battle in the final round Qualifying on Wednesday. Their first round opponent was UCLA's 17th-ranked duo of Daniela Bercek and Riza Zalameda, but the Gator pair lost a 9-7 thriller and will now compete in the consolation draw.
"Our doubles teams are doing a great job of being relentless in terms of sticking to the game plan and strategy, and good things happen when we do," Balogh said. "We're getting better each match, each game and that's what it's all about here. We're improving and that's the most exciting part of our experience."
Riviera/ITA All-American Women's Tennis Championships
Riviera Tennis Club
Pacific Palisades, Calif.
Oct. 7, 2004
UF Results Only
Singles, First Round (field of 32)
Zerene Reyes (47), UF def. Courtney Bergman (27), Harvard 7-5, 2-6, 7-5
Audra Cohen, Northwestern def. Jennifer Magley (12), UF 4-6, 6-3, 6-4
Doubles, First Round (field of 16)
Whitney Benik/Lolita Frangulyan, UF def. Cristelle Grier/Alexis Prousis (9), Northwestern 8-5
Daniela Bercek/Riza Zalamdea (17), UCLA def. Boglarka Berecz/Nina Suvak (36), UF 9-7
Jennifer Magley/Zerene Reyes (12), UF def. Daniela Alvarez/Maria Brito (21), Clemson 8-4
END OF REPORT
