Top-seeded Florida earned a hard-fought 4-0 victory over eighth-seeded and host Auburn in the quarterfinals of the Southeastern Conference Tournament played Friday at the City of Auburn/Auburn University Yarbrough Tennis Center.
The Gators (19-1) will face fourth-seeded and 12th-ranked Vanderbilt in the semifinal round on Saturday at 3 p.m. ET. The Commodores advanced after their 4-0 win over instate rival Tennessee. The other semifinal match features No. 2-seeded Georgia against No. 3-seeded Arkansas.
“Overall, I thought we played great. We were a little tentative in doubles, at times, but I think that was to be expected for the first match in a tournament,” UF head coach Roland Thornqvist said. “We knew how good Auburn was and that we had to play well or we could be in trouble.”
Florida's doubles teams again helped set the tone for the dual match, as the Gators battled on every position and earned the important late breaks on all three courts en route to winning the initial point of the competition after taking the victory on courts No. 2 and No. 3.
“I was proud of our performance because we were smart on the court and played well at the end of our doubles matches and that carried through to singles, where I thought we were very sharp,” Thornqvist said.
UF's No. 3 doubles pair of Julia Cohen and Anastasia Revzina continued their undefeated streak and improved to 16-0 with their 8-6 decision over Jil Hastenrath and Gaby Beelen in 55 minutes. The 16-match win streak is tied for the sixth longest in program history, matching the run also accomplished by Traci Green and M.C. White during the 1998-99 season. Florida actually lost the opening serve and didn't get the match back on-serve until earning a break in the fourth game and Revzina holding to give the Gators a 3-2 lead. The next two servers held, with Cohen not relinquishing a point in either of her first two service games and gave UF the momentum in game eight, where they lost one point to take a 5-3 lead. The final four games of the match were breaks, as UF's fourth break was the clincher.
“I really enjoy playing with Julia, she is the best doubles partner I've ever had,” Revzina shared. “We have good communication. There were a lot of games today that were really close, but she was always positive. We were picking each other up throughout the match and (assistant coach) Dave's (Balogh) coaching really helped.”
Whitney Benik and Csilla Borsanyi then provided the deciding victory in the doubles point, using an 8-5 decision over Fani Chifchieva and Whitney Chappell, as Florida won the doubles point for the 20th time this season. The match opened with two breaks and stayed on-serve until the two teams again traded breaks in the sixth and seventh games. The only other break was in the 12th game, where Borsanyi blasted a backhand winner off a serve on break point and carried that momentum to the baseline, where she served out at love to secure the victory.
UF's No. 1 doubles pair of Megan Alexander and Marrit Boonstra led their match 7-6 with Boonstra serving when play was abandoned after the Gators clinched the doubles point.
Senior Whitney Benik roared out to a quick lead in her No. 3 singles match against Melissa Koning, en route to a 6-1, 6-3 win to post her 15th consecutive singles victory and improve to a team-leading 18-1 in dual match action. Benik, who also recorded her 75h career dual match singles victory, began Friday's match holding her serve, as did Koning, before the Gator veteran marched off the next six games to take the first set and open the second with a break. Koning broke right back and the set remaining on-serve until the sixth game, where Benik pulled ahead, 4-2, and the rest of the set was on-serve, as Benik gave Florida a 2-0 lead.
“We were all so focused entering today's match,” Benik said. “We were expecting Auburn to be every bit as tough as they were, but we all had our 'A game' today. They seemed to drop their shoulders a little after we won the doubles point because we all knew that everyone was so close in singles that it was going to be a blow to which ever team lost it. This is the best I've ever played in singles in my career. I'm having the best time of my life with this team and it's great.”
Fellow senior Lolita Frangulyan then extended her singles winning streak to 18 with her 6-4, 6-4 victory over Dunja Djuranovic that gave Florida a 3-0 lead. Frangulyan came out ahead of the first set that featured seven service breaks, as she earned her fourth of the frame to take the opening set. She later used two breaks midway through the second set to build a 5-2 lead, as she earned one final break to secure the win and improve to 13-0 in dual matches this season.
Sophomore Anastasia Revzina provided the clinching victory for the second time this year against Auburn (15-9), as she battled past Jil Hastenrath 6-3, 6-2 in one hour and 22 minutes, compared to the three-set thriller during the regular season that helped the Gators earn the 4-3 victory. Revzina, who tallied her 11th straight singles win, used breaks in the second and sixth games to take the first set, before opening the second with a 3-0 lead behind a pair of breaks. Hastenrath got on the board with a break in the fourth game, but Revzina struck again in the seventh and served out for the win to secure Florida's 16th-consecutive dual match victory.
Friday's win improved the Gators to 21-0 all-time in SEC Tournament quarterfinal matches, while extending their series record to 29-0 against Auburn.
Florida holds a 35-2 all-time record against Vanderbilt (18-4), including the 5-2 regular-season Gator win in Gainesville on February 29. Florida has won five consecutive matches against the Commodores, including in the 2005 and 2007 SEC Tournament semifinals.
“Vanderbilt is a tough, tough team that is really well-coached,” Thornqvist said. “It's definitely going to be a battle tomorrow and we're going to need to be sharp.”
SEC Women's Tennis Tournament
City of Auburn/Auburn University Yarbrough Tennis Center
Auburn, Ala.
Friday, April 18, 2008
Team Quarterfinal Results
#3 Arkansas d. #6 LSU, 4-0
#2 Georgia d. #7 Kentucky, 4-1
#4 Vanderbilt d. #5 Tennessee, 4-0
#1 Florida d. #8 Auburn, 4-0
Individual Results from UF's match
Final Score: Florida 4, Auburn 0
Doubles
1. Megan Alexander/Marrit Boonstra (6), UF led Alex Haney/Melissa Koning (15), AU 7-6 DNF
2. Whitney Benik/Csilla Borsanyi, UF d. Fani Chifchieva/Whitney Chappell, AU 8-5*
3. Julia Cohen/Anastasia Revzina (50), UF d. Jil Hastenrath/Gaby Beelen, AU 8-6
Singles
1. Julia Cohen (27), UF vs. Fani Chifchieva (17), AU 3-6, 4-3 DNF
2. Csilla Borsanyi (33), UF vs. Alex Haney (66), AU 3-6, 6-1, 0-3 DNF
3. Whitney Benik, UF d. Melissa Koning, AU 6-1, 6-3
4. Marrit Boonstra, UF vs. Whitney Chappell, AU 6-2, 4-4 DNF
5. Anastasia Revzina (110), UF d. Jil Hastenrath, AU, 6-3, 6-2*
6. Lolita Frangulyan, UF d. Dunja Djuranovic, AU, 6-4, 6-4
Order of Finish: Doubles-3,2*; Singles-3, 6, 5*
Records: Florida 19-1, Auburn 15-9
END OF REPORT
