Results (PDF)
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The No. 26 University of Florida women's tennis team (11-9, 7-5) erased a 3-1 deficit and earned a dramatic 4-3 victory over No. 14 Michigan (13-5, 9-0) Thursday evening at the Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex.
Trailing 3-1 and with Michigan's Giulia Pairone leading 5-4 in what would have been the deciding set on court two, the Gators rattled off three-straight singles wins to snap the Wolverines' eight-match winning streak.
Sophomore
McCartney Kessler, who hadn't appeared in a singles match since March 31 at Texas A&M due to injury, earned the match-clinching win as she dispatched No. 75 Pairone, 2-6, 7-5, 6-4. No. 37 Kessler's victory sealed Florida's come back after Michigan was within one point of a win.
Freshman
Marlee Zein and junior
Tsveta Dimitrova also added singles victories for the Gators who played in their ninth match decided by a 4-3 score this season.
After the Gators opened the match by collecting the doubles point, Michigan countered with a stretch of dominant singles play to get out to a 3-1 lead. In what looked to be a dire situation for UF, Zein and Dimitrova battled for victories on courts four and five, respectively, to help the Gators equalize at 3-3. Following Dimitrova's come-from-behind win in three sets, all eyes shifted to court two where two top 100 players squared off with the match's verdict on the line.
Kessler, nursing an injury, dropped the first set and trailed late in the second, but showed tremendous resiliency to earn a thrilling three-set win. Kessler faced a 5-4 deficit in the second set and Pairone held a 40-15 edge in what looked to be the final game, but the sophomore came back to nab a 7-5 win. Kessler carried her momentum into the third set, building a 4-0 lead and held on to record a 6-4 win.
The Gators bolstered their NCAA Tournament resume as they added their second top 15 victory this season.
Florida set the tone early by securing the doubles point. The Gators came out with aggressive play, building a 3-0 lead on all three courts. The Wolverines wouldn't go down easy though as on each court Michigan fought back to make things interesting in the latter portions of the sets. The freshmen combo of Zein and
Sydney Berlin got the Gators on the board with a 6-3 win over Lommer/Lorenzini, nabbing their second straight victory. Despite building a 4-1 advantage, Dimitrova and
Ida Jarlskog dropped a 7-5 decision on court two to as Michigan tied the score.
Victoria Emma and Kessler clinched the point for Florida when the tandem held on for a 6-4 victory over No. 25 Fahey/Minor.
No. 51 Emma/Kessler picked up their second top 25 victory of the season as they halted Fahey and Minor's eight-match winning streak.
Michigan quickly flipped the script in singles, claiming the opening set on five courts. The Wolverines evened the score at 1-1 when No. 44 Brienne Minor bested No. 94 Emma 6-1, 6-4 on court three. Michigan continued to roll as it then picked up wins on courts six and one to mount a 3-1 advantage. The Wolverines looked poised to walk away with a 4-1 victory as No. 75 Pairone led late, but Kessler had other plans.
After Kessler fought off Pairone in a critical second set, she paved the way for Zein who tallied UF's first singles win with a 7-5, 6-1 victory on court four. Dimitrova followed Zein's lead with her come-from-behind victory on court five.
Florida, winners of four of its last five, has secured the doubles point in back-to-back matches for the first time since March 8 at Arkansas and March 10 at Missouri. The Gators improved to 6-4 when winning the doubles point.
UF improved to 4-4 in non-conference action and extended its lead in the all-time series vs. Michigan to 5-0.
Taking on its 12
th straight top 50 team, Florida earned a win in its first of three matches this week.
Up Next
Saturday, April 13
No. 26 Florida (11-9, 7-5) vs. No. 5 South Carolina (16-3, 11-1)
10 a.m. ET
Gainesville, Fla.
No. 26 Florida vs. No. 14 Michigan
Doubles Results
No. 51
McCartney Kessler/
Victoria Emma def. No. 25 Kate Fahey/Brienne Minor, 6-4
Giulia Pairone/Anca Craciun def.
Ida Jarlskog/
Tsveta Dimitrova (Florida), 7-5
Marlee Zein/
Sydney Berlin (Florida) vs. Chiara Lommer/Bella Lorenzini, 6-3
Doubles order of finish: 3,2,1
Singles Results
No. 3 Kate Fahey def. No. 10
Ida Jarlskog (Florida), 6-4, 6-0
No. 37
McCartney Kessler (Florida) def. No. 75 Giulia Pairone, 2-6, 7-5, 6-4
No. 44 Brienne Minor def.
No. 94 Victoria Emma (Florida), 6-1, 6-4
Marlee Zein (Florida) def. No. 45 Chiara Lommer, 7-5, 6-1
Tsveta Dimitrova (Florida) def. Anca Craciun, 2-6, 6-1, 6-2
Alyvia Jones def.
Sydney Berlin (Florida), 6-2, 6-2
Singles order of finish: 3,6,1,4,5,2
Quotes from the Court
Head Coach Roland Thornqvist
Overall thoughts on match…
"I thought we played really well in doubles to start it out and they (Michigan) are a fantastic doubles team, so that gave us quite a boost. But then we lost five of the first six sets in singles and it really looked like they were leaning on us. They were really loud and were taking it to us at a couple of spots that I didn't really anticipate. I think previously this year, those were times that I felt like our team didn't have the maturity to withstand it. We would sort of fold a little. But today you saw the opposite of that. You saw McCartney (Kessler), who is still coming back from injury and isn't 100 percent, find a way to fight and get the win. She was just exceptional at the end. You saw Tsveta (Dimitrova), who dropped an easy first set, but change some things tactically and turn it around quickly. Marlee (Zein) also played at an extremely high level. So there are just a lot of cool things about this one because this Michigan team is wicked good."
On moving forward and the importance of the win…
"Obviously now we have an extraordinary opportunity to make the NCAA Tournament. We were sort of concerned about that with the .500 rule, even though that I thought from a talent standpoint we certainly belong in there. But some of those 4-3 losses early in the year were looking like they might bite us in the rear end. This win helps us a great deal, not only with the .500 rule and our ranking but most importantly we showed a lot of grit and resolve to get it done tonight. When the weather gets hot like this you need to be tough and you need to be gritty and we definitely showed that."
On Kessler's gritty performance…
"McCartney is so tough. She sensed we had an opportunity and she stepped up and took it. I think she learned a lot today and I'm so proud of the way she played. We are obviously super grateful for her effort because it helped the team win."
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