Marrit Boonstra overcame the heat, severe cramping and the nation's sixth-ranked singles player to clinch Florida's thrilling 4-3 victory over Auburn on a warm and beautiful Sunday afternoon at Linder Stadium at Ring Tennis Complex.
With the team score knotted at 3-all, the eighth-ranked Boonstra and Tiger junior Fani Chifchieva battled for two hours and 25 minutes, before the Gator junior emerged with a 3-6, 6-1, 6-2 victory that extended Florida's program-record 75-match regular-season home winning streak and helped the Gators (12-7, 6-4 SEC) improve to 146-1 all-time at home against Southeastern Conference teams.
After losing the first set, Boonstra broke Chifchieva in a long game to open the second, where she cruised to force a deciding third. The final frame remained on-serve through the first five games, with Chifchieva serving to even the set at 3-all. With the game score at duce, Boonstra went down with cramping in her left leg that required attention. After a short break, Chifchieva won the next point to hold the advantage, however, Boonstra found a way to win the next three points and took a 4-2 lead. Serving at 3-all in the seventh game, the Gator double-faulted, giving Chifchieva her first break-point. Again, Boonstra fought back and won three straight points and held for 5-2. She then rode the momentum of the previous game and the enthusiasm of the crowd to win the first three points off of Chifchieva's serve, eventually capitalizing on her third match point to earn the dramatic victory.
“I don't know how she did it,” UF head coach Roland Thornqvist said. “She was really torn up after being in a similar situation against LSU and lost it, but today she played to win the match not just put the ball in play and hope her opponent would lose it. We talk a lot about how to handle ourselves at the end of sets. When she started cramping at the end, though, I don't know how she found the inner strength to do it.”
“It was because of the crowd that I won,” Boonstra shared. “They helped me out so much. They were amazing. I remember the feeling I had after losing at LSU and I just didn't want to leave the court today without winning.”
With the team score tied at 1-all, UF freshman Joanna Mather gave the Gators their first singles victory of the afternoon, downing Whitney Chappell, 6-1, 6-2 at the No. 3 position.
“She's incredible, she's my hero,” Mather said of Boonstra's effort on the singles court, as she ran to congratulate her teammate even before Boonstra had a chance to shake Chifchieva's hand at the net. “She fought so hard and it was beautiful. In my match, my goal was to play consistent and I did that.”
Auburn again tied the score when 39th-ranked Alex Haney played an outstanding match and defeated UF's 38th-ranked Anastasia Revzina, 6-3, 6-1, halting the Gator's seven-match singles win streak in addition to handing Revzina her first career dual match singles loss to an SEC opponent in 24 contests.
“We were out-played at a lot of spots and you have to give Auburn all the credit on those courts,” Thornqvist said. “It was a mighty effort for Auburn at No. 2, there wasn't much we could do against her today.”
Auburn (11-10, 3-6 SEC) took its first lead of the dual match after winning at court No. 6. Three minutes later, though, Gator rookie Jessica Alexander came through with a hard-fought 6-3, 7-5 victory over Myrthe Molenveld at the No. 4 spot. Alexander and Molenveld traded breaks in the fourth and fifth games of the second set, which remained deadlocked until the 12th game, where Alexander smacked a forehand cross court deep into the corner for a winner to earn the break and take the victory on her first match point. Alexander's victory set the stage for the showcase court to decide the outcome.
The Gators also needed a clutch performance from their No. 1 team to secure the all-important doubles point. After Auburn quickly captured the decision on court No. 3, Florida appeared in control at the No. 2 spot, where Anastasia Revzina and Barbara Pinterova earned a hard-fought 8-2 victory over Myrthe Molenveld and Daniela Vkadinovic. The Gators held serve throughout while earning breaks in the third, seventh and ninth games, before Revzina served out for the match, keeping the doubles-point alive.
All attention then turned to the outstanding play on the showcase court, where Marrit Boonstra and Joanna Mather, ranked No. 80, were battling Auburn's 34th-ranked duo of Whitney Chappell and Alex Haney. The Gators fell behind 3-0 and fought off several break points as Mather held to get Florida on the board, 3-1. The home team road that momentum into the next game, where they earned a break and Boonstra held to get the match back on-serve. Neither team was able to take a lead, but Auburn did come close in the 12th game, where Mather was able to fight off one break point and capitalized on her fourth game point for 6-all. Florida then jumped out to a lead and on its first break point, Mather was pulled several feet wide of the court, sprinting to her right tracked down and smacked a forehand around the net post that landed deep for a winner. From there, Boonstra used her powerful serve and lost just one point in closing out the match to give the Gators the 8-6 victory and the doubles point.
“We didn't play well at all at No. 1 doubles until the end, when we did some very good things,” Thornqvist said. “Even though we didn't execute like we should have at the beginning, we hung in there and played smart at the end. I'm really, really proud.”
Nine of Florida's 19 matches this season have ended in a 4-3 decision, with six of the team's seven losses coming in those tight contests.
Florida next plays host to South Carolina on Saturday in the regular-season finale for both teams. First serve is scheduled for 10 a.m. and admission is FREE.
Women's College Tennis
No. 30 Alabama at No. 21 Florida
Linder Stadium at Ring Tennis Complex * Gainesville, Fla.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Final Score: Florida 4, Auburn 3
Doubles
1. (80) Marrit Boonstra/Joanna Mather, UF d. (34) Whitney Chappell/Alex Haney, AU 8-6*
2. Anastasia Revzina/Barbara Pinterova, UF d. Myrthe Molenveld/Daniela Vkadinovic, AU 8-2
3. Fani Chifchieva/Jil Hastenrath, AU d. Brooke Allen/Lauren Wolken, UF 8-0
Singles
1. (8) Marrit Boonstra, UF d. (6) Fani Chifchieva, AU 3-6, 6-1, 6-2*
2. (39) Alex Haney, AU d. (38) Anastasia Revzina, UF 6-3, 6-1
3. Joanna Mather, UF d. Whitney Chappell, AU 6-1, 6-2
4. Jessica Alexander, UF d. Myrthe Molenveld, AU 6-3, 7-5
5. Daniela Vkadinovic, AU d. Barbara Pinterova, UF 6-0, 6-2
6. Jil Hastenrath, AU d. Brooke Allen, UF 6-0, 6-1
Order of Finish: Doubles-3, 2, 1*; Singles-6, 3, 2, 5, 4, 1*
*indicates clinching doubles point and dual match win
Records: Florida 12-7, 6-4 SEC; Auburn 11-10, 3-6 SEC
-UF-
