GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The No. 22 University of Florida men's tennis teams return to the Ring Tennis Complex on Saturday afternoon to take on the Furman Paladins at 4 p.m. The Gators added the Paladins to their 2016 schedule after their match against the UCLA Bruins was cancelled.
After two weeks of practice, the Gators are looking to snap their two match skid with a victory over the Paladins. The Orange and Blue have been in two close matches that came down to the final singles court. In the Pac-12/SEC Challenge, UF fell to the No. 8 USC Trojans, 4-3. The Gators went down 3-0 in the match, but came storming back with singles wins from
Diego Hidalgo, Elliott Orkin and
Gordon Watson. In the end, freshman
Alfredo Perez could not overcome #83 Jake DeVine and fell, 7-6, 7-5.
The Orange and Blue will play a match each of the next three weekends to gear up for SEC play. Up next for the Gators, the #8 Ohio State Buckeyes in Columbus, Ohio next Sunday at 1:00 p.m.
Last Serve with Furman Florida and Furman squared off on Feb. 3, 2013 in Gainesville. The Gators swept that Paladins that day with the help of a doubles and a singles victory from now-senior
Gordon Watson.
Series History against the Furman Paladins The Gators will play the program's 30
th match against Furman on Saturday. UF leads the all-time series at 29-0.
There's a New #1 Senior tandem Hidalgo and Watson are the new No. 1 doubles team in the latest Oracle ITA Rankings. The doubles pairing has defeated some highly-ranked opponents during their run, including the No. 2-ranked Texas Tech duo of Felipe Soares and Hugo Dojas.
Making Moves Junior Elliott Orkin has been making moves in the latest singles rankings. The Gator is now No. 21 in the country after beginning the 2016 dual match season at No. 49. Orkin is 4-1 and has competed at the No. 1 and No. 2 singles positions.
Match Information #22 Florida vs. Furman
Saturday, Feb. 13, 2016 at 4 p.m.
Scott Linder Stadium at the Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex (Free Admission, Free Parking)
Live Stats:
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