LEXINGTON, Ky. – The No. 31 University of Florida women's tennis team built a 3-2 advantage, but saw the host No. 23 Kentucky Wildcats record victories on the final two courts and grab a 4-3 win Friday night at the Boone Tennis Center in Lexington, Ky.
The Gators and Wildcats, who entered the matchup tied for third place in the SEC, met for a competitive match as Florida battled its fifth-straight top 50 foe.
Florida (7-7, 4-3) got off to a strong start by securing its seventh doubles point of the season and No. 38
McCartney Kessler and No. 67
Victoria Emma each picked up singles wins, but it wasn't enough as the Wildcats snapped their eight-game slide against the Gators.
The sophomore Kessler continued her strong play, registering her fourth-straight singles win.
The Gators, who entered the matchup having dropped two straight doubles points, got back on track as courts two and three picked up wins. For the sixth time in their last eight matches,
Tsveta Dimitrova and
Ida Jarlskog earned a victory as they finished off Tkachenko/Tiphanie, 6-2. After trailing 3-2 early, the freshmen combo of
Marlee Zein and
Anastasia Kharitonovanotched a 6-4 win to secure 1-0 edge for Florida. Emma/Kessler saw their match go unfinished vs. No. 14 Mikulskyte/Parazinskaite.
After Kentucky evened the count at 1-1, Emma came through for the Gators with a 6-3, 6-4 win on court three to swing the momentum back in the Gators' favor.
Emma improved to 3-2 in SEC play.
The Wildcats then countered with a 6-3, 6-4 win on court two to equalize at 2-2 as No. 16 Jarlskog fell to 9-3 on the year.
Kessler, who after claiming the first set fell behind 5-1 in set two, stormed back and collected a 6-3, 7-5 win to put the Gators back ahead, 3-2.
The action turned to courts four and six where a pair of freshmen remained for Florida. Zein forced a third set and pushed Akvile Parazinskaite to the limit, but ultimately fell 4-6, 6-4, 2-6. Berlin then dropped a hard-fought 6-7, 4-6 decision as Anastasia Tkachenko clinched it for UK.
The Gators continue their season-long four-match road swing when they travel to No. 5 Vanderbilt Sunday.
Up Next
Sunday, March 24 | 2 p.m. ET
No. 31 Florida (7-7, 4-3) at No. 5 Vanderbilt (10-4, 5-1)
Currey Tennis Center | Nashville, Tenn.
No. 31 Florida at No. 23 Kentucky
Doubles Results
Victoria Emma/
McCartney Kessler (Florida) vs. No. 14 Justina Mikulskyte/Akvile Parazinskaite, 5-6 (Unfinished)
Ida Jarlskog/
Tsveta Dimitrova (Florida) def. Diana Tkachenko/Tiphanie Fiquet, Kentucky, 6-2
Marlee Zein/
Anastasia Kharitonova (Florida) def. Lesedi Jacobs/Alexis Merrill, Kentucky, 6-4
Doubles order of finish: 2, 3
Singles Result
No. 35 Justina Mikulskyte (UK) def. No. 16
Ida Jarlskog (Florida), 6-3, 6-4
No. 38 McCartney Kessler (Florida) def. Lesedi Jacobs (UK), 6-3, 7-5
No. 67 Victoria Emma (Florida) def. Tiphanie Fiquet (UK), 6-3, 6-4
Akvile Parazinskaite (UK) def.
Marlee Zein (Florida), 6-4, 4-6, 6-2
Diana Tkachenko (UK) def.
Anastasia Kharitonova (UF), 6-1, 6-1
Anastasia Tkachenko (UK) def.
Sydney Berlin (Florida), 7-6, 6-4
Singles order of finish: 5, 3, 1, 2, 4, 6
Quotes from the Court
Head Coach Roland Thornqvist
Overall thoughts on match…
"We played decent doubles tonight, but just didn't play Florida tennis in singles. It's simple but you really need to have all six courts fighting together. You have to come together and have everyone fight for something greater than themselves. When we have everyone fighting like that, that's what we have built here over the years. My job is to find the best six players and put us in the best position to win."
On positives to build off going forward…
"McCartney (Kessler) continues to play well for us. She got down big in the second set but won seven straight points. Her play is going to be a real positive for us. You can say the same for Victoria (Emma) , she defeated a very talented player tonight."
On adjustments going forward…
"We are going to have to debrief after this one, but our message going forward is pretty simple. It's all about fight and desire. We have to be willing to do whatever it takes and do everything we can do to win."
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