GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The University of Florida men's tennis team (12-6, 7-1 SEC) earned their fourth consecutive win on Sunday. The Gators defeated the University of Arkansas (9-12, 2-6 SEC) 6-1 at the Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex.
For the second consecutive match courts, one and two finished quickly in doubles.
McClain Kessler and
Duarte Vale took care of business on court two with a 6-3 victory while
Alfredo Perez and
Johannes Ingildsen fell for the first time in SEC play on court one, 6-3. With all eyes turned towards court three it was time for
Chase Perez-Blanco and
Oliver Crawford to switch gears. The pair trailed the whole match, including falling behind 5-3. With the lights shining the brightest the pair did what they had to do and took it one point at a time, winning four straight points to take the match 7-5, and win the doubles point for Florida.
The Gators jumped on the Razorbacks at the start of singles, taking early first set leads on all six courts. The first two Gators to complete their singles matches and earn team points for Florida were also the last two playing in doubles. Crawford was the first one done with a blistering 6-1, 6-0 win on court three. A few minutes later Perez-Blanco also earned a straight-sets victory on court four by scores of 6-3, 6-2. Florida clinched the match on court five when
Andy Andrade earned a 6-3, 6-2 decision. The Gators and Razorbacks played out the remaining three matches with Kessler earning his second victory of the weekend 7-5, 6-4 and Ingildsen winning 6-4, 3-6, 10-6. Arkansas's lone point came from a win in singles on court one.
Quoting Coach Shelton
On Chase and Oliver's gritty come from behind win
"They love to win. At times when their back is against the wall, they seem to play their best tennis. We would certainly prefer if they do that earlier in the match when the opportunities are there. They lost some points early but converted almost every time late. We just have to be a little more ahead of the game because that's a tough position to be in. Arkansas played well but I give our guys credit for maintaining their composer and have the presence of mind to execute those critical points at the end was fantastic."
On improved doubles play
"At No. 2 doubles we were much better today. At No. 1 we didn't play poorly, they just made us uncomfortable and you're going to get that in doubles with a six-game set and no ad scoring. Overall our energy was better across the board and I think that led to us getting that doubles point."
On hosting a kids clinic after the match
"It's the best. To be able to connect with our community and know that we have that community involvement. To bring smiles to those kids faces. They had a blast. It was fun for me to not only see the smiles on all the kid's faces but to see the smiles on our guys' faces as well. They thoroughly enjoy connecting with the kids. It's a great opportunity that we are afforded here and I'm glad the University of Florida supports the community and wants to be active in the community because that is something that is very important to me."
Quoting Perez-Blanco
On coming from behind in doubles
"We got off to slow starts in the last two matches but it was still early in the match where we had enough time to bounce back. We kept telling each other to stay positive and we would get our chance. We had a couple of those chances today and we didn't convert but at the last minute we were able to convert and get the job done for the team."
On the teams win streak
"We are getting confident. We have the right mindset right now to where even if we do get down we are still positive as a team and willing to fight no matter what and it's a good mindset to be in right now as we enter the last couple of matches and postseason."
Gator Notes
• Florida improved to 28-2 all-time against Arkansas
• This was the Gators fourth straight win over the Razorbacks
• Florida is now 11-1 this season when they win the doubles point
• The Gators four-match win streak is their longest of the season
• When we have been ranked ninth this season we are 6-1
• Crawford extended his singles winning streak to 10 matches and remains undefeated in conference play in both singles and doubles
• Perez-Blanco earned his 88th career singles win and has 174 career singles and doubles wins. He is just two total wins away from having the eighth most wins in program history
• Perez-Blanco won his sixth consecutive match in singles
• Kessler improved to 22-8 all-time when playing at No. 6 singles
• Vale and Kessler are currently on a four-match winning streak in doubles
Match Results
Doubles
(1)) Oscar Mesquida/Adam Sanjurjo (AR) def. #1 Perez/Ingildsen (UF) – 6-3
(2) #32 Kessler/Vale (UF) def. Jose Salazar/Alex Reco (AR) – 6-3
(3) #8 Perez-Blanco/Crawford (UF) def. Pedro Alonso/Jose Alonso (AR) – 7-5
Florida won Doubles Point
Order of Finish: 2, 1, 3
Singles
(1) #65 Jose Salazar (AR) def. #8
Alfredo Perez (UF) – 6-4, 6-4
(2) #11
Johannes Ingildsen (UF) def. Adam Sanjurjo (AR) – 6-4, 3-6, 10-6
(3) #51
Oliver Crawford (UF) def. Oscar Mesquida (AR) – 6-1, 6-0
(4)
Chase Perez-Blanco (UF) def. Alex Reco (AR) – 6-3, 6-2
(5)
Andy Andrade (UF) def. Pedro Alonso (AR) – 6-3, 6-2*
(6)
McClain Kessler (UF) def. Jose Alonso (AR) – 7-5, 6-4
Order of Finish: 3, 4, 5*, 1, 6, 2
*Clincher
Up Next
Florida will be on the road for the next couple of weeks with one final out-of-conference match scheduled for Friday. The Gators will travel to Winston-Salem, N.C. to take on the No. 1 ranked Demon Deacons of Wake Forest at 3 p.m. on Friday, March 30 before jumping back into SEC play on Sunday against South Carolina.
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