Florida Gators
#8 Georgia
No. 6 Men's Tennis Tops No. 8 Georgia as Jackson Notches 100th Home Win as UF Head Coach
Sunday, April 11, 2010 | Men's Tennis
The sixth-ranked Florida men's tennis team handed Georgia its first SEC loss of the season, downing the Bulldogs, 5-2, on Sunday afternoon at Linder Stadium at Ring Tennis Complex.
“Our guys really answered the bell after coming so close on Friday,” UF head coach Andy Jackson said. “It showed a lot of character. We were disappointed that we lost the first championship [SEC regular season], but we know there are other championships available coming up with the SEC Tournament, NCAA regional championships and the big prize.”
With the win, Florida (16-3, 8-1 SEC) also gave Jackson his 100th home victory as the UF head coach (100-11, .901). It also marked the second time this spring that the Gators have topped the Bulldogs (17-5, 9-1 SEC), with the other matchup coming in February's ITA National Team Indoor Championships.
“It's huge,” said Alexandre Lacroix (Paris, France). “It's Florida-Georgia. It's always good to beat them. We have some young guys, but we showed that we have a lot of maturity. The crowd on Friday and today really helped us. We're all Gators, so it's nice to have a huge crowd. It's really something that can change matches.”
“We have one of the best home-court advantages in the country,” Jackson echoed. “It was a very good way to get to 100 here.”
The Gators dropped the doubles point on Sunday, but Nassim Slilam (Paris, France) scored a quick victory on court six, downing Will Oliver, 6-2, 6-0, in just over an hour to even the score at 1-1. Seventh-ranked Lacroix struck next, posting a straight-sets win over No. 86 Nate Schnugg at No. 1 singles to put Florida up, 2-1.
Sekou Bangoura Jr. (Bradenton, Fla.) then finished off a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Will Reynolds on court five to bring the Gators within one point of the team victory??. Joey Burkhardt (St. Augustine, Fla.) fell at second singles to No. 22 Javier Garrapiz to bring the score to 3-2, leaving the Gators in need of one more victory to clinch the team victory.
On court four, Bob Van Overbeek (Boca Raton, Fla.) weathered a 6-2 first-set loss and forced a third set by winning a second-set tiebreaker, 7-3. Van Overbeek got the crucial break early in the set and held serve the remainder of the match to earn the clincher and was mobbed by his teammates after scoring the winning point.
“Early on, my game plan was working about the opposite of how I'd hoped,” Van Overbeek said. “My doubles partner, Daniel Cash (Oslo, Norway), came over behind my court to cheer me on, and that was a big help. When I'm down, I play more aggressively and try to have a big serve to take control of the point early.
“The crowd was great and helped keep me motivated and excited, not that I could've been any more motivated to win today,” Van Overbeek continued. “You see that you're playing not just for yourself, but for your teammates and the crowd.”
The importance of the day's other three-setter, a two-hour and 50-minute victory by Antoine Benneteau (Boulogne-Billancourt, France) on court three, should not be understated though UF had won by the time he wrapped up the Gators' fifth point. With Van Overbeek and Benneteau both in three-set clashes, the pressure on each was somewhat decreased knowing they had a teammate to pick up the slack if they faltered.
“Antoine winning his first-set tiebreaker was huge,” Jackson said. “That helped take the pressure off Bob's shoulders. That's team tennis.”
Benneteau bounced back from a 6-1 deficit in that tiebreaker to win, 8-6, meaning he would have an opportunity for a three-set match, at worst.
“He calmed down and just played tennis,” Jackson said of that first-set comeback. “He had been pressing a little bit. It shows a lot of character to keep fighting when you're down 6-1. A lot of kids would've thrown in the towel there.”
In the end, both came through with victories, sending Florida into its final regular season match next Saturday against South Carolina with an opportunity to wrap up a second place finish in the SEC.
“That's not the accomplishment we initially set out for, but it's still a very good accomplishment,” Jackson said.
The showdown with the Gamecocks will also be Senior Day for Benneteau and Cash. The match will start at 1 p.m. at Linder Stadium at Ring Tennis Complex. Like all regular season home matches, admission is free.
Florida vs. Georgia
Doubles
No. 1 – Garrapiz/Schnugg (UGA) def. (12) Benneteau/Lacroix (UF) – 8-6*
No. 2 – Hunt/Vitulli (UGA) def. (49) Bangoura/Burkhardt (UF) – 8-6
No. 3 – Cash/Van Overbeek (UF) def. Bernstein/Oliver (UGA) – 8-1
Order of Finish: 3, 2, 1*
Singles
No. 1 – (7) Alexandre Lacroix (UF) def. (86) Nate Schnugg (UGA) – 6-3, 7-5
No. 2 – (22) Javier Garrapiz (UGA) def. Joey Burkhardt (UF) – 6-3, 6-3
No. 3 – Antoine Benneteau (UF) vs. Jamie Hunt (UGA) – 7-6 (6), 2-6, 6-2
No. 4 – Bob Van Overbeek (UF) vs. Drake Bernstein (UGA) – 2-6, 7-6 (3), 6-4*
No. 5 – Sekou Bangoura Jr. (UF) def. Will Reynolds (UGA) – 6-4, 6-4
No. 6 – Nassim Slilam (UF) def. Will Oliver – 6-0, 6-2
Order of Finish: 6, 1, 5, 2, 4*, 3
*Clinched doubles point/match victory
-UF-
