Florida Gators
#22 Texas
No. 4 Women's Tennis Defeats No. 22 Texas, 5-2
Saturday, February 17, 2007 | Women's Tennis
The fourth-ranked University of Florida women's tennis team opened a challenging weekend with a 5-2 victory over No. 22 Texas on an unseasonably cold Saturday afternoon at Linder Stadium at Ring Tennis Complex.
The Gators earned the hard-fought doubles point, capturing wins at the No. 1 and No. 2 positions after Texas opened the match taking the victory on court No. 3. Florida then received singles wins from Diana Srebrovic, Nina Suvak, Anastasia Revzina and Megan Alexander to complete the team win.
“I thought our doubles play was key today,” UF head coach Roland Thornqvist said. “When we're able to win the doubles point, we play with much more confidence when we start singles because we know the depth of our lineup. I thought we handled the pressure in doubles well. It was the second time this year that it's come down to the final match and we've been able to step up our play both times.”
The win improved the Gators' overall record to 6-0, setting the stage for Sunday's huge match against instate rival Miami, ranked eighth. Florida, which has won 33 consecutive home matches, has not lost on its home courts since the Hurricanes stunned the Gators, 4-3, in the second round of the 2004 NCAA Championships. Florida also will put its regular-season home win streak on the line Sunday, entering the match having won 47 straight at the Ring Tennis Complex.
Texas falls to 4-2, dropping its second match in 24 hours after losing to Miami, 4-3, on Friday.
Diana Srebrovic was the first Gators off the singles court, posting a 6-3, 6-0 victory over Petra Dizdar. The UF junior earned an early break and jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first set. After both held serve, Srebrovic earned another break, but lost her serve in the ensuing game, still holding a 5-2 lead, as the two competitors held for the remainder of the set. Srebrovic cruised in the second set, earning the one-set bagel and give the Gators a 2-0 lead in the team scoring.
“This was a great overall win for the team, especially with Miami coming in on Sunday,” Srebrovic said. “In doubles, I started off a little slow, but Megan was really solid, so once I started picking up my game we played better. In singles, I started off playing well and continued it. I was stepping into the ball and hitting with confidence.”
Nina Suvak, UF's lone senior, got off to a slow start in her No. 5 match against Stephanie Davison, as the Longhorn opened with a break and took the early lead. The competitors held serve for the next four games before Suvak broke Davison at love in the sixth game to get the set back on-serve after she held. Suvak then earned another break before serving out for the opening frame. Suvak broke Davison's first two serves in the second set, taking a 3-0 lead before Davison got on the board with a break of her own. Suvak, however, broke right back and won the final three games to post her sixth consecutive singles victory.
Freshman Anastasia Revzina provided the clinching dual match win with her 6-2, 6-2 over Ristine Olson at the No. 6 position. The opening set featured six breaks, with Revzina claiming four of those as she quickly took the first set. The second set began with a pair of breaks before Revzina claimed another one in the sixth game and closed out the dual match with her seventh of the contest to capture the win.
Megan Alexander, a native of Dallas, gave the Gators their fifth point of the dual match after she defeated Courtney Zauft 7-5, 6-0 at the No. 2 position and earned her 11th consecutive singles win. The first set featured multiple duce games with seven service breaks. The Gator rookie opened the match with a break, but she couldn't enjoy it too long as Zauft earned a pair of breaks sandwiched between another from Alexander as the set was on-serve through eight games. Alexander then broke Zuaft at love, but couldn't hold her serve in the next. She battled back and earned fourth break of the set to take a 6-5 lead, then serving out for the set. The tough first set seemed to break Zauft's spirit, as Alexander was able to win all the big points in the second set and earn the win.
“The first set was tough because we were still getting to know each other's game,” Alexander said. “I had a lot more errors in that first set, but I was able to clean them up in the second and that made a big difference in the match.”
Florida jumped out early on the No. 1 and No. 2 doubles courts, earning quick breaks on both before Texas evened the match with breaks of its own and got the respective matches back on-serve at the midway point.
The No. 2 position became the deciding doubles-point match, as UF's pair of Megan Alexander and Diana Srebrovic battled past Petra Dizdar and Ristine Olson, 8-5, to spot the Gators a 1-0 lead. With the match on-serve through six games, the next three games were breaks, with UF holding the edge and Srebrovic holding to give the Gator pair a 6-4 lead. But the UT rallied and broke Alexander in the 12th game to get the match back on-serve. UF capitalized on its second break-point in the 15th game and Alexander served out for the win.
“I was a little nervous, but excited knowing that our match was going to clinch the doubles point,” Alexander shared. “I thought Diana and I played well down toward the end and we were able to get the team the point.”
On court No. 1, after Whitney Benik held to begin the match, the next five games were breaks. Benik and Nina Suvak emerged with a one-break lead after six games, before Suvak held to give the Gator tandem a 5-2 lead. Texas lost its next serve, but broke right back and held. The Longhorns then took Suvak's serve at love, but the Gators broke right back and Benik served out for the win to even the doubles matches at one apiece.
Texas took control early at the No. 3 position, jumping out to a 4-0 lead before the Gator pair earned a break and Anastasia Revzina held to cut the deficit to 4-2, down just one break. But the Longhorns earned another break in the eighth game and it was too much for the Gators to overcome, as Vanja Corovic and Marija Milic, defeated Csilla Borsanyi and Revzina, 8-4.
College Women's Tennis
No. 22 Texas at No. 4 Florida
Linder Stadium at Ring Tennis Complex
Gainesville, Fla.
Saturday, February 17, 2007
Final Score: Florida 5, Texas 2
Doubles
No. 1 Whitney Benik/Nina Suvak (14), UF vs. Sarah Lancaster/Courtney Zauft, UT
No. 2 Megan Alexander/Diana Srebrovic, UF def. Petra Dizdar/Ristine Olson, UT 8-5*
No. 3 Vanja Corovic/Marija Milic, UT def. Csilla Borsanyi/Anastasia Revzina, UF 8-4
Singles
No. 1 Diana Srebrovic (11), UF def. Petra Dizdar, UT 6-3, 6-0
No. 2 Megan Alexander (95), UF def. Courtney Zauft, UT 7-5, 6-0
No. 3 Vanja Corovic, UT def. Whitney Benik (78), UF 6-4, 6-3
No. 4 Sarah Lancaster (70), UT def. Csilla Borsanyi, UF 6-4, 6-2
No. 5 Nina Suvak, UF def. Stephanie Davison, UT 6-3, 6-1
No. 6 Anastasia Revzina, UF def. Ristine Olson, UT 6-2, 6-2*
Order of Finish: Doubles-3, 1, 2; Singles-1, 5, 6, 2, 4, 3
*indicates clinching doubles/dual match point
END OF REPORT
