NASHVILLE, Tenn. – In the Southeastern Conference's marquee match of the weekend, No. 12 Florida (10-6, 5-1 SEC) was able to come out on top over No. 20 Vanderbilt (14-3, 4-1 SEC) 4-3, and defeat their second consecutive opponent who was undefeated in SEC play.
The Gators strongest asset all season has been their play in doubles. With three different duos ranked in the 12 nationally, including the No. 1 overall duo, and four total pairs ranked it's easy to see why the Gators are now 9-1 when they win the doubles point.
At No. 3 doubles,
Chase Perez-Blanco and
Oliver Crawford put together one of their best performances of the season with a blistering 6-0 decision that barely took 20 minutes. A few minutes after the conclusion of their match the Gators clinched the doubles point on Court two. The duo of
McClain Kessler and
Duarte Vale clinched their second doubles point in as many matches with a 7-5 decision.
In singles, it was junior
Alfredo Perez who set the pace for the Gators. After earning the 6-4 set one win, he locked in and cruised to a 6-0 win in the second set and give Florida a 2-0 advantage in the match.
The Gators third point of the afternoon came from court six when Perez-Blanco earned a 6-4, 6-2 victory. Perez-Blanco's win in singles gave him 86 for his career which moved him into the top 10 in program history for career singles wins. He is currently tied with Michael Alford (2011-14). With both his doubles and singles win on Sunday Perez-Blanco also moved into the top 10 for total career wins with 170. He is tied for 10th with Nestor Briceno (2005-08).
For the second consecutive match, it was Crawford who was able to pick up the match-clinching point for the Gators. In the third set, Crawford trailed 4-2, but that didn't stop the freshman from winning his eighth consecutive match. He won the next four points to take the third set 6-4 and clinch the match for Florida.
Quoting Coach Shelton
On the teams win
"What a great win for our team on the road [Sunday]. Vanderbilt is a very good team and we had to dig deep to get this win and I am really proud of our guys. We faced a lot of adversity this week, and to come out of it with two quality wins certainly gives us more confidence. Our team continues to learn and develop. We are able to do more on the court and our guys are gaining confidence in their abilities to solve problems. I'm really excited to continue working on the areas where we are growing this coming week."
On Perez-Blanco's career milestones
"Chase has found his stride again and is playing and competing at a high level. Chase has been consistently big for us throughout his college career, so to break into the top 10 in Florida Men's Tennis history is extraordinary. He is an even better person, so I'm really proud of him."
Quoting Perez-Blanco
On the importance of big SEC wins
"It was a huge win for us an especially to win 4-3 on the road. It gives us a lot of confidence going into the next few matches."
On career win milestones
"I was aware that I was getting close to top 10. Every win as a gator means so much to me because I play with these guys and our team.
Gator Notes
• Perez-Blanco and Crawford earned their second shutout in doubles this season and first since a 6-0 win over South Alabama
• The Gators earned their fifth SEC win of the season
• Florida is now 6-4 against top 25 opponents
• Crawford has won eight straight matches and six straight SEC matches
• Florida improved to 42-9-1 all-time against Vanderbilt
• Florida is now 6-1 against Vanderbilt under head coach
Bryan Shelton
• This is the Gators third straight win over Vandy
• Florida improved to 9-1 on the year when they win the doubles point and
• Perez earned his 75th career singles win and 50th career dual singles match
• Kessler picked up his 35th career doubles victory
Match Results
Doubles
(1) #1 Perez/Ingildsen (UF) vs #57 Cam Klinger/Billy Rowe (VU) – DNF, 5-5
(2) #12 Kessler/Vale (UF) def. #75 Lachlan McPhee/Panu Virtanen (VU) – 7-5
(3) #10 Perez-Blanco/Crawford (UF) def. Danny Valent/Baker Newman (VU) – 6-0
Florida won Doubles Point
Order of Finish: 3, 2
Singles
(1) #7
Alfredo Perez (UF) def. #57 Cam Klinger (VU) – 6-4, 6-0
(2) #79 Danny Valent (VU) def. #6
Johannes Ingildsen (UF) – 6-3, 7-6
(3) #93
Oliver Crawford (UF) def. Baker Newman (VU) – 6-4, 4-6, 6-4*
(4) Billy Rowe (VU) def. #68
Duarte Vale (UF) – 2-6, 7-5, 6-4
(5) Max Freeman (VU) def. #101
Andy Andrade (UF) – 6-3, 6-4
(6)
Chase Perez-Blanco (UF) def. Panu Virtanen (VU) – 6-4, 6-2
Order of Finish: 1, 5, 6, 2, 4, 3*
*Clincher
Up Next
Florida will be back at home next weekend for two SEC matches. The Gators will host Ole Miss on Friday, March 23 at 5 p.m. and Arkansas on Sunday, March 25 at 1 p.m.
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