Florida Gators

Final Results (PDF)

GAINESVILLE, Fla. –Winning for the second-straight match over a ranked opponent, the University of Florida women's tennis team (5-4, 3-1) knocked off No. 22 Texas A&M (9-4, 1-2) Sunday afternoon at Linder Stadium at the Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex.
 
Senior McCartney Kessler clinched the Gators' victory from court number one as she overcame an early deficit to dispatch the Aggies' ace Jayci Goldsmith, 5-7, 6-4, 6-2. After dropping her opening set and trailing 4-2 in her second, the All-SEC talent Kessler came all the way and delivered Florida's match-sealing win, its third victory in its first four SEC tilts.

Fellow senior Ida Jarlskog, posting her second victory of the weekend, also finished in the win column with a hard-fought, three-set triumph over Katya Townsend which setup Kessler's eventual clinch. Improving to 10-3 overall on the year, junior Sydney Berlin notched the Gators' first singles win when she cruised to a 6-1, 6-1 win on court five.

For the third time in their four league matches, the Gators struck first by securing the doubles point. Despite the Aggies' duo on court three claiming in the opening match over Berlin and Amber McGinnis, Florida battled back to earn victories on the remaining courts. Jarlskog and Sara Dahlstrom defeated TAMU's No. 2 team, Riley McQuaid and Jessica Anzo, 6-4 in a tight match before No. 26 Marlee Zein and Kessler, battled for the point-clinching win. Winning for the fifth-straight match, UF's top tandem overcame a 4-3 deficit to rally back and claim the match 7-5.

Extending her winning streak to four matches, Berlin helped the Gators strike first with a dominant win on court five to make it 2-0 in favor of UF. The Aggies answered back with a win on court six where senior Riley McQuaid defeated the freshman McGinnis, 6-0, 6-1. Texas A&M tied the match at 2-2 when its highest-ranked player, No. 64 Tatiana Makarova took out Zein, 7-6 (7-4), 6-2 from court two.

After the first three matches, all two-set affairs, concluded, the final three courts were all back-and-forth battles. Florida held the ultimate edge though as Jarlskog and Kessler prevailed in succession to provide it with its second top 25 win of the weekend.

The freshman Dahstrom saw her match go unfinished with her lead 3-2 in the third set. The Gators, who took on their fifth ranked opponent in their nine matches played, improved to 9-3 all-time against the Aggies.

UP NEXT: The Gators return to the road as they travel to Georgia and Tennessee next weekend.

Florida 4, No. 22 Texas A&M 2
Doubles Results
No. 26 McCartney Kessler and Marlee Zein (UF) def. No. 39 Tatiana Makarova and Jayci Goldsmith, 7-5
Ida Jarlskog and Sara Dahlstrom (UF) def. Riley McQuaid and Jessica Anzo, 6-4
Katya Townsend and Dorthea Faa-Hviding def. Sydney Berlin and Amber McGinnis (UF), 6-1

Doubles order of finish: 3,2,1

Singles Results
No. 32 McCartney Kessler (UF) def. Jayci Goldsmith, 5-7, 6-4, 6-2
No. 64 Tatiana Makarova def. Marlee Zein (UF), 7-6 (7-4), 6-2
Ida Jarlskog  (UF) def. Katya Townsend, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3
Sara Dahlstrom (UF) vs. Dorthea Faa-Hviding, 3-6, 6-4, 3-2, unfinished
Sydney Berlin (UF) def. Jessica Anzo, 6-1, 6-1
Amber McGinnis (UF) def. Riley McQuaid, 6-0, 6-1

Singles order of finish: 5,6,2,3,1

Quotes from the Court
Head Coach Roland Thornqvist
Overall thoughts on the match…
"Amazing college tennis match, I mean from start to finish it was close sets and close matches. I was really happy and really pleased with the way we competed honestly. We had to, we got pushed. Clinical in doubles in the end. I was really happy to see how we ended the matches on both one and two doubles to get the doubles point. We were willing to make some moves and have courage at the end. Which is something that we have been talking about for a month. It's nice to see them get paid when we do the right things. You know in singles, they have an extremely talented team. It was nice to see Sydney (Berlin) off the court quickly, that really helped us. Obviously, we needed to dig deep and get some three set wins on the other courts. Sara (Dahlstrom) did a really nice job too, I know she didn't get to finish but her turning her match around and turning her court really helped Ida (Jarlskog) and McCartney (Kessler). With the way they compete, they're just beasts for us. Overall fantastic weekend for us. I feel like we have gotten better not just in terms of forehands and backhands, but also mentally. We are a much tougher team and a much more competitive team than we were a few weeks ago and that bodes well for the future."

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