GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Florida defeated Missouri, 4-0, for its fifth consecutive win and improved to 9-1 in the Southeastern Conference on a beautiful Saturday afternoon at Linder Stadium at the Ring Tennis Complex.
 
The Gators (14-5, 9-1 SEC) opened with strong play on the doubles courts to claim the first team point of the dual match, before McCartney Kessler, Anna Danilina and Peggy Porter posted straight-set singles wins to secure the dual match for Florida, which will cap a busy four-day span on Sunday when the team plays No. 7 Texas at the USTA National Campus in Orlando.
 
On Saturday, the Gators were impressive on all three doubles courts, with the pairs on courts two and three netting the wins.
 
Kessler was the first off the singles court, where she earned a 6-1, 6-0 decision against Ellie Wright, who had a significant cheering section in the stands as a graduate of local Buchholz High School. Kessler just missed the double-bagel win, as Wright held in the third game of the match. The Gator freshman improved her team-leading dual match record to 13-3 after today's win which was her eighth straight.
 


Danilina was the next off the court and battled a tricky Serena Nash. The Gator senior, however, was took good today and earned the 6-1, 6-0 victory which was her seventh consecutive on the singles court. Nash held in the fifth game of the first set to avoid the double-bagel.
 


Porter provided the clinching dual match victory, logging a 6-3, 6-1 win against Clare Raley. After trading breaks a couple times, the first set was on-serve through six games before Porter earned another break for a 4-3 lead and won the next two games to take the first set and hold to begin the second. Raley held in the second game of the second set for her lone game.
 



Doubles the Fun

• The Gators won the doubles point for the 12th time this season and improved to 11-1 when doing so.
• Florida's two team of McCartney Kessler and Josie Kuhlman logged a 6-2 win for the first individual result of the day. With the match on-serve through four games, the Gators stepped up and won the final four to take the win and improve to a 13-6 in dual matches.
• Courts one and three were both at match-point, as the Florida three team of Katie Kubicz and Peggy Porter put their ball in play first for a 6-2 win to clinch the doubles point. Like court two, Kubicz and Porter were on-serve through four games before winning the last four to capture the decision.
• Anna Danilina and Victory Emma were receiving up 5-3 and 40-40, when play was abandoned.

 




Busy, Busy, Busy

• Florida is in the midst of playing three matches in four days.
• Saturday's home match against Missouri was the middle match of that stretch. UF defeated Arkansas (4-1) on Thursday and will play No. 7 Texas in Orlando on Sunday.
• The Gators have won five consecutive matches entering Sunday's action.

 
Florida vs. Missouri: The UPDATED Series

• All-Time: UF leads the all-time series against Missouri, 6-0 (3-0 at home; 3-0 away; 0-0 neutral)
• Last Meeting: The Gators blanked Missouri, 4-0, on March 26, 2017
• Streak: The series began in 2013 and the Gators have won all matches against the Tigers

 
Saturday's Competitors in the Individual ORACLE/ITA National Rankings

• Florida: SINGLES - #19 Anna Danilina, #48 Josie Kuhlman; DOUBLES - #23 Anna Danilina & Victoria Emma
• Missouri: none

 
Streaking Along

• Florida: The Gators have won five consecutive matches following Saturday's victory.
• Missouri: The Tigers have dropped their last nine matches and dropped to 11-12 overall and 0-9 in the SEC.

 
SEC Race

• Florida has just three SEC matches remaining and is 9-1 in the league with a half-game lead over Vanderbilt (8-1) for second in the standings. Entering Saturday, Georgia is 6-2 and Mississippi State is 5-3 in league matches.
• South Carolina (9-0) leads the SEC as the only undefeated team.
• The Gators remaining SEC matches: at South Carolina (April 7), host Kentucky (April 12) and host Vanderbilt (April 14).

 
Quotes from the Court

• UF Coach Roland Thornqvist: https://youtu.be/vQjf9_paP0c

 

• Senior Anna Danililna: https://youtu.be/F0BR76ILzBM

 

• Senior Peggy Porter: https://youtu.be/vVMO_KSCar4 

 
What's Next for the Gators

• What: The Gators take a break from SEC action and face Big 12 leader Texas.
• Who: No. 12 Florida (14-5) vs. No. 7 Texas (13-4)
• When: Sunday, April 1 * 5 p.m.
• Where: USTA National Campus * Orlando, Fla.
• Admission: FREE, but must be reserved at www.ustanationalcampus.com
• Television: Tennis Channel with Leif Shiras, Tracy Austin and Prakash Amritraj
• Live Scoring: http://scores.tennisticker.de/usa/ustanc/lp.html?lid=37
• Of Note: with television's broadcast only scheduled for two and half hours, singles matches will be played before doubles

 
More About Sunday's Match

• Sunday's match is part of College MatchDay and will be played at the USTA National Campus.
• It will be televised live on the Tennis Channel, with Leif Shiras, Tracy Austin and Prakash Amritraj (sideline) covering the action.
• This is the second time this season the Gators will be playing on live TV and part of the College MatchDay experience. Florida dropped a tough 4-1 decision on February 2 to instate rival Florida State at the USTA National Campus. That match was the beginning of the Gators' nine-match road trip during which they posted a 5-4 record.

 
To Rest or Not To Rest

• Sunday's match against Texas is Florida's third in a four-day span, having defeated Arkansas on Thursday and Missouri on Saturday in Gainesville.
• Texas, meanwhile, will be playing its first match in seven days. The last time the Longhorns took to the court was a 4-0 sweep against No. 12 Oklahoma State, a team that defeated the Gators, 4-3, on February 7 in Stillwater. UT has swept its last three opponents.

 
Match 19
Mizzou at #12 Florida
Ring Tennis Complex * Gainesville, FL
Saturday, March 31, 2018
 
Final: #12 Florida 4, Mizzou 0
 
Singles (order of finish: 4,1,5)
1. #18 Anna Danilina (UF) def. Serena Nash (MIZ) 6-1, 6-0
2. #48 Josie Kuhlman (UF) vs. Mackenz Middlebrooks (MIZ) 6-1, 5-2, unfinished
3. Victoria Emma (UF) vs. Amina Ismail (MIZ) 6-4, 4-5, unfinished
4. McCartney Kessler (UF) def. Ellie Wright (MIZ) 6-1, 6-0
5. Peggy Porter (UF) def. Clare Raley (MIZ) 6-3, 6-1*
6. Katie Kubicz (UF) vs. Marta Oliveira (MIZ) 6-1, 1-6, 4-1, unfinished
 
Doubles (order of finish: 2, 3*)
1. #23 Anna Danilina/Victoria Emma (UF) vs. Marta Oliveira/Clare Raley (MIZ) 5-3, unfinished
2. McCartney Kessler/Josie Kuhlman (UF) def. Amina Ismail/Serena Nash (MIZ) 6-2
3. Katie Kubicz/Peggy Porter (UF) def. Mackenz Middlebrooks/Ellie Wright (MIZ) 6-2*
 
Match Notes:
Mizzou 11-12, 0-9 SEC
Florida 14-5, 9-1 SEC; National ranking #12
*Clinching match
 
 
Gator Pronunciations

• Anna Danilina: ON-nah don-uh-LEE-nah
• Josie Kuhlman: COOL-mun

 
 
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