ORLANDO, Fla. – The eighth-ranked Gators fell to Florida State in the Fresh From Florida Sunshine Showdown 4-3 on Saturday night. The two teams played at the United States Tennis Association National Campus in Orlando as part of College Match Day event.
For the first time, this season the Gators lost the doubles point. Florida took the early advantage in doubles when the No. 1 ranked duo of
Alfredo Perez and
Johannes Ingildsen breezed past their competition with a 6-2 victory. After dropping No. 2 doubles it came down to
Oliver Crawford and
Chase Perez-Blanco at No. 3. The Gator pair trailed 5-6 and 40-0 but battled back to tie it at six-all, but were unable to win the tiebreak, giving the Seminoles the point.
Needing to win four of the six singles matches, the Gators had their work cut out for them against the Seminoles. At the start of singles play the Gators looked like a team on a mission, grabbing the early lead in all courts. Florida picked up three quick wins on courts number 3, 5, and 6 to take a 3-1 lead over Florida State. After falling on courts one and four and needing just one more win to seal the match it came down to Crawford. Crawford battled throughout the match but it just was not his night falling in two sets.
Quoting Coach Shelton
On the difference in the match
"It came down points here and there, small margins in a match like tonight. We had a 3-1 lead we were down in the last three matches almost the whole way. If we had played the big points a little better early on it would have helped us. We had a hard time establishing momentum. I have to credit Florida State because the really came out and played good physical tennis."
Quoting Kessler
On the atmosphere of playing the National Campus, in front of 2,000 fans
"It was awesome, like nothing we will see again all year. I enjoyed every moment of it and wish we could play every match in front of a crowd like that."
Match Results
Doubles
#1 – #1
Alfredo Perez /
Johannes Ingildsen (UF) def. Jose Garcia / Lucas Poullain (FSU) – 6-2
#2 – #10
McClain Kessler /
Duarte Vale (UF) vs Guy Iradukunda / Alex Knaff (FSU) – 6-4
#3 – #11
Oliver Crawford /
Chase Perez-Blanco (UF) vs Terrance Whitehurst/Terrell Whitehurst – 7-6(3)
Florida State won Doubles Point
Order of Finish: 1, 2, 3
Singles
#1 – Guy Iradukunda (FSU) def. #7
Johannes Ingildsen (UF) – 7-6(10), 6-3
#2 – Lucas Poullain (FSU) def.
Oliver Crawford (UF) – 7-6(4), 7-6(5)
#3 – #39
Duarte Vale (UF) def. Jose Garcia (FSU) – 6-4, 6-3
#4 – Alex Knaff (FSU) def.
Andy Andrade (UF) – 1-6, 6-4, 6-2
#5 –
Chase Perez-Blanco (UF) def. Chase Wood (FSU) – 6-3, 6-0
#6 –
McClain Kessler (UF) def. Rana-Roop Singh Bhullar (FSU) – 6-2, 7-5
Order of Finish: 5, 3, 6, 4, 1, 2*
*Clincher
Up Next
No. 8 Florida will be on the road for the next month with road trips to No. 2 Ohio State and No. 14 Michigan before heading to Seattle to compete in the National Indoor Championships.
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