The sixth-ranked University of Florida women's tennis team finally overcame the weather elements to be able to compete, however, the Gators didn't fair well playing on indoor courts, where they dropped a 4-3 decision to No. 15 Duke Friday evening at the Sheffield Indoor Tennis Center.
After enduring postponements or cancellations to four dual matches already this season, the Gators (3-1) were anxious to compete against a highly-ranked squad, but it was the Blue Devils (2-0) who rallied from a 2-0 deficit to snap a five-match losing streak to Florida, which now holds a 30-4 all-time record against Duke. The Gators' last loss to the Blue Devils was a 4-3 decision on Feb. 9, 2003 in the finals of the National Team Indoor Championships. Florida went on to win the NCAA title later that season.
The Gators opened Friday's match winning the doubles point, sweeping all three positions. The No. 1 pair of sophomore Megan Alexander and newcomer Marrit Boonstra produced the clinching 8-5 win over Amanda Granson and Melissa Mang, after Whitney Benik and Lolita Frangulyan topped Tara Iyer and Reka Zsilinszka, 8-6, on court No. 2.
Freshman Julia Cohen then provided Florida with a 2-0 lead, having little trouble disposing of Tara Iyer, 6-3, 6-0, at the No. 1 singles position.
Duke's 17th-ranked Reka Zsilinszka then got the Blue Devils on the board with a 7-5, 6-3 victory over 37th-ranked Alexander on court No. 4, before fifth-ranked Ellah Nze evened the dual match at 2-all with a 7-5, 6-3 decision over 59th-ranked Csilla Borsanyi at the No. 2 spot.
Boonstra, however, moved Florida within one victory of the dual match after dropping 99th-ranked Amanda Granson 6-4, 7-5 at No. 6, to give the Gators a 3-2 lead.
But the Blue Devils had seized control on the remaining two singles courts, and polished off the upset as Melissa Mang topped 50th-ranked Anastasia Revzina at No. 5, before Elizabeth Plotkin provided the clincher with a 6-2, 1-6, 6-1 final over Benik at the No. 3 position.
“Duke did a great job of capitalizing on the momentum swing. They were vocal and showed a lot of energy and when the sensed victory, they got tougher,” UF head coach Roland Thornqvist said. “We definitely need to play more of those big matches because we didn't look comfortable when things tightened. Hopefully, we will learn a lot about our performance today and that will help us in future matches.”
The Gators have little time to regroup, as Florida plays No. 5 North Carolina (6-2) on Sunday in Chapel Hill beginning at 1 p.m.
Women's College Tennis
No. 6 Florida at No. 15 Duke
Sheffield Indoor Tennis Center * Durham, N.C.
Friday, February 15, 2008
Final Score: Duke 4, Florida 3
Doubles
1. Megan Alexander/Marrit Boonstra, UF d. Amanda Granson/Melissa Mang, DU 8-5*
2. Whitney Benik/Lolita Frangulyan, UF d. Tara Iyer/Reka Zsilinszka, DU 8-6
3. Julia Cohen/Anastasia Revzina, UF d. Ellah Nze/Elizabeth Plotkin, DU 9-8 (7-3)
Singles
1. Julia Cohen, UF d. Tara Iyer, DU 6-3, 6-0
2. Ellah Nze (5), DU d. Csilla Borsanyi (59), UF 7-5, 6-3
3. Elizabeth Plotkin (57), DU d. Whitney Benik, UF 6-2, 1-6, 6-1*
4. Reka Zsilinszka (17), DU d. Megan Alexander (37), 6-1, 6-4
5. Melissa Mang, DU d. Anastasia Revzina (50), UF 6-4, 6-4
6. Marrit Boonstra, UF d. Amanda Granson (99), DU 6-4, 7-5
Order of Finish: Doubles-2, 1*, 3; Singles-1, 4, 2, 6, 5, 3*
END OF REPORT
