Florida Gators

Box Score (PDF)

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The No. 16 Florida men's tennis team wrapped up its regular season with a 7-0 sweep of Auburn on Sunday afternoon (April 16). The Gators finished the 2017 season with a 9-3 SEC record, which is the third-best in the conference. 

With its two wins this weekend, Florida earned a No. 3 seed for the SEC Tournament, to be held later this month.

In doubles play, the Tigers earned the first win as Joshua Wardell and Chase Perez-Blanco fell to Sarrio/Huertas 6-3 on Court 3. The Gators came back with a win to split the matches as No. 6 Johannes Ingildsen and Alfredo Perez defeated Nguyen/Laubser 6-3 on Court 1.

With the doubles point in the hands of Court 2, seniors Maxx Lipman and Elliott Orkin pulled out a 6-4 win over AU's Saleh/Thestrup to clinch the point for Florida.

After clinching the doubles point, Lipman and Orkin were recognized on the court as a part of the Senior Day celebration. The two competed in their final regular-season dual match on Sunday afternoon.

In singles play, McClain Kessler earned the first singles point for the Gators with a quick 6-3, 6-0 defeat of Michael Durham. With a 2-0 lead over the Tigers, three courts finished back-to-back to clinch the match for the Gators and give Florida a 5-0 lead. Perez defeated Carles Sarrio on Court 1, Ingildsen clinched the match with a win over Brandon Laubser, and Lipman followed up with a win on Court 4 to propel the Gators to its eventual sweep.

Perez-Blanco was the next to finish, as he earned a 6-2, 6-1 win over Edward Nguyen to give the Gators a 6-0 lead.

The last match of the day was on Court 2, as Orkin battled Huertas in the longest match of the day. Orkin won the first set 6-2, but Huertas wouldn't let the sweep come easily. The second set ended in a tiebreaker, where Orkin eventually came out on top to bring the final score to 7-0.

Orkin's win over Huertas brought the senior his 100^th career overall singles win, which ranks eighth all-time in UF's history. His 179 career combined wins currently ranks seventh in program history.
 
Quoting Head Coach Bryan Shelton

On how he saw the results of today's match…
"I felt that the doubles certainly wasn't easy, we got off to a slow start at number two doubles, and I think that was the key doubles for us. Getting down a break but then working ourselves back into the match, and just playing better as we went along I think really set us up for winning the doubles point."

On the seniors, Maxx Lipman and Elliott Orkin…
"Today was really about Maxx and Elliott, just celebrating the two of those guys on senior day, we certainly wanted to come out and play well to get a win for those guys and the program. Especially those two, because they've really meant a lot to me being my first class that I brought in here. The character that the guys came into the program with, and helping us to establish a new culture here. They really set the tone for the new players coming in here, and told them who they could look up to and try to model their behavior and their effort and their energy after the things that they did and the way they handled themselves academically."

"I think we really wanted to finish this season on a positive note today, and I think it was fitting that those two clinched the doubles point for us today, and that Elliott was able to win the last match out there. Just a lot of fitting things, it was great to see their families out here today, we've had such amazing support from both the Lipman's and the Orkin's. These guys are certainly going to be missed, but I'm glad we have some more battles together before it's over."

On what it means to play at home in front of fans for their last weekend…
"After being on the road for a couple straight weeks it felt really good to be at home this weekend and to be here on Easter weekend and be able to celebrate that, to celebrate the guys and to finish strong. It always feels good when you have people behind you, and our fans have been very consistent and we appreciate their efforts, especially to come out here on Easter Sunday and spend their day with us means a lot. We're just thankful for our Boosters, our friends and families that came out and supported us. We love playing for the Gators, this is a very special place and it's a privilege to be able to coach here and play here."
 

#16 Florida 7, Auburn 0
Sunday, April 16, 2017 | 1 PM
Gainesville, Fla. | Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex

Doubles (Order of finish: 3, 1, 2)
1. #6 Ingildsen/Perez (UF) def. Nguyen/Laubser (AU), 6-3
2. Lipman/Orkin (UF) def. Saleh/Thestrup (AU), 6-4*
3. Sarrio/Huertas (AU) def. Wardell/Perez-Blanco (UF), 6-3

Singles (Order of finish: 6, 1, 5, 4, 3, 2)
1. #9 Alfredo Perez (UF) def. Carles Sarrio (AU), 6-3, 6-3
2. Elliott Orkin (UF) def. Conner Huertas (AU), 6-2, 7-6
3. Chase Perez-Blanco (UF) def. Edward Nguyen (AU), 6-2, 6-1
4. Maxx Lipman (UF) def. Dante Saleh (AU), 6-4, 6-2
5. Johannes Ingildsen (UF) def. Brandon Laubser (AU), 6-3, 6-3*
6. McClain Kessler (UF) def. Michael Durham (AU), 6-3, 6-0
*Clinching victory

 

 

Up Next for the Gators
With the next week off of competitions, Florida will focus on the SEC Tournament, which will be held April 26-29 in Knoxville, Tenn. The Gators earned a No. 3 seed in the tournament, and will face the winner of Ole Miss/Auburn on Friday, April 28. 

 
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