GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The ninth-ranked Florida men's tennis team improved to 2-0 on the season with their 4-0 win over South Alabama in the opening round of Intercollegiate Tennis Association Kick-Off Weekend tournament Saturday.
 
The Gators wasted no time against South Alabama as they won the doubles point in less than a half-hour. At No. 3 doubles, Oliver Crawford and Chase Perez-Blanco sped through their match with a 6-0 victory in just 18 minutes. A mere seven minutes later the Gators secured the doubles point at No. 1 doubles when the pair of Alfredo Perez and Johannes Ingildsen won 6-1.
 
The rapid pace continued for Florida in singles as no match exceeded one hour and five minutes. The first match to be completed was at the No. 5 spot where Andy Andrade picked up his second singles win of the year with a 6-0, 6-1 decision. His match lasted just 51 minutes. The Gators second singles point came at the No. 6 spot where Perez-Blanco won 6-0, 6-2 in an hour and five minutes. Florida clinched the match at No. 3 where Oliver Crawford won 6-0, 6-1 in a mere 59 minutes.
 
Quoting Coach Shelton
On the depth of the team
"When other teams come in here to play, or when we go on the road we hope other teams realize that there are no holes in our lineup. We have the type of depth where we can move guys around in the lineup and give guys different opportunities at different positions. We've got guys that haven't even played yet that are more than capable of coming in and competing. It feels great to have that type of depth and I certainly don't take it for granted because I haven't had this type of depth in previous years."
 
On Andrade's success early in the season
"[Andy's] just a phenomenal talent. I said when we recruited them that Oliver and Duarte have already accumulated some accolades, but don't sleep on Andy Andrade because this guy is coming and he's a talent. He is such a likable and fun guy to work with and he is coachable. He keeps listening. We've made a lot of changes in a short period of time and he trusts us and willing to do the things we ask him to do. Still has a lot of room for improvement though."
 
On Alfedo's growing maturity
"He's always been our most volatile player, but right now he is choosing to grow up a little more and show some composure on the court. We've always known that Alfredo is a great tennis player, and as he continues to work on keeping his composure during the heat of the battle, then his best tennis is coming."
 
Quoting Andrade
On his solid start to the dual season
"It feels good to start strong. That's what I wanted, a fresh start. I enjoy playing out here and the team is good and has great energy."
 
Quoting Perez-Blanco
On the team's depth
"It just shows how deep we are. The matchups at the top of the lineup are always going to be tough and to have such a deep lineup shows that we can mix up the lineup and anyone can play any position. It's tough for other teams to know what we are going to do and it is tough for them to find a weakness in our lineup."
 
On first singles win of the season
"A little nerves just because it was the first time out there but after the first ball is struck you kind of relax."
 
Match Results
Doubles
#1 – #1 Alfredo Perez / Johannes Ingildsen (UF) def. Loic Cloes / Clement Marzol (USA) – 6-1
#2 – #10 McClain Kessler / Duarte Vale (UF) vs Olivier Gingras /Santiago di Loreto – DNF, 3-3
#3 – #11 Oliver Crawford / Chase Perez-Blanco (UF) def. Maxime Lapraille / Lucas Gonzalez (USA) – 6-0
Florida won Doubles Point
Order of Finish: 3, 1
Singles
#1 –  #8 Alfredo Perez (UF) vs Clement Marzol – DNF, 7-5, 1-0
#2 – #7 Johannes Ingildsen (UF) vs Loic Cloes (USA) – DNF, 6-1, 5-3
#3 – Oliver Crawford def. Olivier Gingras – 6-0, 6-1*
#4 – #39 Duarte Vale vs Lucas Gonzalez – DNF, 6-3, 4-1
#5 – Andy Andrade vs Maxime Lapraille – 6-0, 6-1
#6 – Chase Perez-Blanco def. Santiago di Loreto – 6-0, 6-2
Order of Finish: 5, 6, 3*
*Clincher
 
Up Next
No. 9 Florida will be back on the courts Sunday at 2 p.m. to compete in the ITA Kick-Off Weekend Regional Championship. They will play the winner of South Florida and Pepperdine for a chance to advance to next month's ITA National Indoor Championship in Seattle, Wash.
 
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