Florida Gators
Tennessee
Florida Men's Tennis Edges Tennessee, 4-3
Saturday, March 10, 2007 | Men's Tennis
The No. 26 University of Florida men's tennis team held off No. 38 Tennessee in a match that came down to a third set tiebreaker on court five where redshirt senior Jordan Dolberg came out on top to give the Gators a 4-3 victory over the Vols Friday evening in UF's Southeastern Conference home opener. With the win, the Gators improved to 6-3 overall and 2-1 in the SEC, while the Volunteers dropped to 7-4 on the year and 1-2 in the league.
For the first time this season, UF dropped the doubles point but fought back with wins at the top three courts in the order and the decisive win on five.
"I told the team after the doubles point I was proud," said UF head coach Andy Jackson. "We didn't win it, but we were prepared and played the right way against Tennessee, which has one of the best doubles lineups. I thought if we played the same way in singles we'd have a chance and maybe it would work out for us. For Jordan (Dolberg) to come through under severe pressure was huge and it definitely will be a confidence booster for him."
Florida dropped the doubles point with tightly-contested losses on courts two and three. However, UF's Greg Ouellette and Jesse Levine came away with a victory on the top courts with an 8-6 showing over 29th-ranked Bobby Cameron and Kaden Hensel. The win was the highest ranked opponent a Florida doubles team has defeated this season as the UF duo improved to 7-1 in dual matches.
In singles play, UT increased the lead to 2-0 when Derek Stephens defeated Billy Mulligan on court four (6-4, 6-0).
Levine got Florida on the board by maintaining the solid start to his collegiate career with a 6-4, 7-6 (3) victory at the top of the order against Hensel (No. 29). With the win, the UF freshman improved to 8-0 on the season with each coming in straight sets. In addition, Hensel was the fifth ranked opponent Levine has defeated.
Briceno (No. 106) evened the match with a 7-6 (5), 6-4 win on court three against Davey Sandgren. Briceno trailed in the first set tiebreaker, 5-1, before reeling off six straight to take the game and carry the momentum into the second set.
Ouellette (No. 20) gave the Gators their first lead of the night when he posted a 6-2, 5-7, 6-0 decision over Bobby Cameron (No. 30) on court two. The victory was the fourth in the last five matches for Ouellette.
After Kiril Tcherveniachki evened the match for the second time with his win on six the focus shifted to court five where Dolberg held off Rogers for a 6-1, 0-6, 7-6 (5) win.
"After I won the first set I told myself just don't lose the second instead of just play," said Dolberg. "In the third set I got into a rhythm and it was a lot of fun. I've been here five years and I've been waiting for one of these. The Gators helped me through tonight."
Florida closes out the weekend against No. 1 Georgia on Sunday at 1 p.m. in Gainesville. The first 250 fans will receive a free Florida Tennis keychain courtesy of Gatorade. Fans can also register for a random drawing for prizes. Admission to the match is free.
College Men's Tennis
Linder Stadium at Ring Tennis Complex
Gainesville, Fla.
Friday, March 09, 2007
Final Score: Florida 4, Tennessee 3
Doubles
No. 1 Greg Ouellette-Jesse Levine, UF def. Bobby Cameron-Kaden Hensel (19), UT, 8-6
No. 2 Adam Hubble-Ben Rogers (39) def. Dan Cash-Billy Mulligan, UF, 8-5
No. 3 Davey Sandgren-Kiril Tcherveniachki, UT def. Nestor Briceno-Geoffrey Barton, UF, 8-6
Singles
No. 1 Jesse Levine (13), UF def. Kaden Hensel (29), UT, 6-4, 7-6 (3)
No. 2 Greg Ouellette (20), UF def. Bobby Cameron (30), UT, 6-2, 5-7, 6-0
No. 3 Nestor Briceno (106), UF def. Davey Sandgren, UT, 7-6 (5), 6-4
No. 4 Derek Stephens, UT def. Billy Mulligan, UF, 6-4, 6-0
No. 5 Jordan Dolberg, UF def. Ben Rogers, UT, 6-1, 0-6, 7-6 (5)
No. 6 Kiril Tcherveniachki, UT def. Shaun Young, UF, 7-6 (4), 6-1
Order of Finish: Doubles – 3, 2, 1 Singles – 4, 1, 3, 2, 6, 5
END OF REPORT
