Florida Gators

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The No. 31 University of Florida women's tennis team stormed back from a 3-0 hole, but its comeback bid fell just short as it dropped a 4-3 decision to No. 5 Vanderbilt Sunday afternoon at the Currey Tennis Center.
 
Vanderbilt, the defending SEC Champions, collected the doubles point and wins on the first two singles courts, but the Gators showed great resiliency and resolve to come back and equalize with the Commodores. Freshman Sydney Berlin, appearing at the No. 6 slot for the second straight match, fought hard but fell 6-3, 6-3 to No. 97 Emily Smith as the Commodores walked away with a narrow 4-3 win.
 
No. 16 Ida Jarlskog picked up a top 10 win as she defeated No. 6 Fernanda Contreras, 6-2, 6-4, but it wasn't enough as the young Gators fell in a challenging road contest to the 2018 National Runner-Up. The sophomore Jarlskog outperformed the senior Contreras, one of the SEC's best on the singles circuit, as she improved to a team-best 10-3 on the dual campaign.
 
No. 38 McCartney Kessler also registered an impressive win as she overcame an early deficit and knocked off No. 13 Christina Rosca, 2-6, 6-3, 6-1 while Marlee Zein rallied back to secure a 1-6, 6-2, 6-4 victory of her own. The first-year Gator came up big as she earned a win at No. 4 to knot things up at 3-3.
 
Florida trailed early as the Commodores claimed victories on courts one and three to secure the doubles point. Victoria Emma and Kessler, who entered the matchup with victories in four of their past five matches, fell 6-1 while Berlin/Zein, playing together for the first time this season, dropped a 6-3 decision to No. 37 Fernanda Contreras and Summer Dvorak.
 
The Commodores, picked to finish second in the SEC this season, carried their momentum into singles play where they earned victories on courts three and five to jump out to a 3-0 edge.
 
No. 67 Emma, who entered the match with consecutive singles wins, saw her streak snapped as she dropped a 6-0, 6-3 contest to No. 62 Georgia Drummy. After Dimitrova suffered a setback on court five, Vanderbilt had all the momentum in its favor. But Florida wouldn't go lightly as Jarlskog and Kessler registered back-to-back wins to get the Gators within striking distance at 3-2.
 
With the match being played indoors, Berlin's court was the last to get started and the freshman competed till the end but couldn't break through against the nationally-ranked Vanderbilt senior, Smith.
 
Sunday marked Florida's seventh 4-3 verdict this season.
 
Florida continues its four-match road swing when it takes on LSU in Baton Rouge on Friday, March 29.
 
Up Next
Friday, March 29 | 5 p.m. ET
No. 31 Florida (7-8, 4-4) at No. 21 LSU (13-6, 3-4)
LSU Tennis Complex | Baton Rouge, La.  
 
No. 31 Florida at No. 5 Vanderbilt
Doubles Results
Emma Kurtz/Emily Smith def. Victoria Emma/McCartney Kessler (Florida), 6-1
Ida Jarlskog/Tsveta Dimitrova (Florida) vs. No. 49 Georgia Drummy/Christina Rosca, 5-4 (Unfinished)
No. 37 Fernanda Contreras/Summer Dvorak  def. Marlee Zein/Sydney Berlin (Florida), 6-3

Doubles order of finish: 1,3
 
Singles Results
No. 16 Ida Jarlskog (Florida) def. No. 6 Fernanda Contreras, 6-2, 6-4
No. 38 McCartney Kessler (Florida) def. No. 13 Christina Rosca, 2-6, 6-3, 6-1
No. 62 Georgia Drummy def. No. 67 Victoria Emma (Florida), 6-0, 6-3
Marlee Zein (Florida) def. Summer Dvorak, 1-6, 6-2, 6-4
Carolyn Campana def. Tsveta Dimitrova (Florida), 6-4, 6-2
No. 97 Emily Smith def. Sydney Berlin (Florida), 6-3, 6-3
 
Singles order of finish: 3, 5, 1, 2, 4, 6
 
Quotes from the Court
Head Coach Roland Thornqvist
 
Overall thoughts on match…
"There was some extremely high-level tennis played today. I'm proud to see us fight back after starting off so poorly in doubles and at the beginning of singles. We came out and played a little too carefully in singles and dropped four of the first five sets because of that. But we really changed our mindset and showed tremendous resiliency and resolve to come back the way we did. I feel bad for our players after this one because they really gave it all they had. It was all you can ask for. But like I've talked about a lot this season, we continue to grow collectively and experiences like these are truly invaluable for a group as young as ours."

On main takeaways and adjustments going forward…
"There's tons of things individually that we can draw from this match and result and we will cover those throughout this next week. We will set smaller goals and achieve them, and that's what will help us breakthrough in these 4-3 matches."
 
On Sydney Berlin's performance and experience gained…
"Sydney (Berlin) carried herself really well when the attention shifted to her court, and I was very proud of that. She was in complete control of her emotions and played the game the right way. Going up against a high-caliber veteran player, she definitely held her own. Again it's just  so valuable for younger players to play in moments like that and I'm excited for how she will learn from it going forward."

On the play of Ida Jarlskog at No. 1…
"Ida (Jarlksog) is our hardest worker. Mentally she's incredibly strong and she backs that up with her play and toughness. She reminds me a lot of former Gator Lauren Embree in that respect. She continues to impress me."
 
On the play of McCartney Kessler at No. 2…
"She played with a professional tennis tempo. She's so fun to watch when she gets it rolling. She was down a set and a break and managed to come back. It really says a lot about her character and the talent she has."
 
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