Gators Sweep Texas, Advance to National Championship

Friday, May 21

Orlando, FL

7:30 PM

Florida Gators

Texas

Freshman Ben Shelton and his father, Gators head coach Bryan Shelton, celebrate after Ben's victory over Chih Chi Huang of Texas on Friday night in the NCAA semifinals. (Photo: Manuela Davies/USTA)

Gators Sweep Texas, Advance to National Championship

Friday, May 21, 2021 | Men's Tennis

Box Score

ORLANDO, Fla. – The Gators men's tennis team is going where no team in program history has gone.

To the national championship.

The No. 1-seed Gators beat No. 4 Texas, 4-0, on Friday night in the national semifinals, avenging a loss to the Longhorns in the Final Four two years ago. Texas went on to win the national title. The Gators hope to do the same Saturday when they face No. 2 Baylor, which defeated Tennessee in Friday's first national semifinal match at the USTA National Campus.

"It's special. I think we have a really special team," UF coach Bryan Shelton said. "Everyone has worked so hard to put us in this position. Now, to get past Texas finally and to make it into the finals, it's pretty special. Certainly realize that. But we're not done yet.

"We think we have the opportunity to do something [Saturday] that is really special."

It all comes down to this... pic.twitter.com/4qyj5hIe1k
— ITA (@ITA_Tennis) May 22, 2021

The Gators (25-2) were hot from the start on Friday, winning the doubles point. In singles, freshman Ben Shelton was the first UF player to win, defeating Chih Chi Huang 6-3, 6-0 at No. 5 singles.

Florida's next victory came at No. 4 singles when Blaise Bicknell defeated Texas' Cleeve Harper 6-1, 7-5. With anticipation building toward a Gators victory, both Duarte Vale and Andy Andrade had match points that the Longhorns survived.

However, Andrade rebounded quickly in the next game to defeat Siem Woldeab at No. 3 singles, 6-3, 7-5 to send the Gators into the national title match on Saturday night.

For Andrade, it was his third time in the NCAA Tournament that he has clinched a win for the Gators.

"Right now I'm playing with a lot of confidence,'' Andrade said. "I have so much trust in our guys. It feels great. But it's not done for us yet. We know what it's going to take for us to win. We can be happy right now and celebrate a little bit, but tomorrow morning is a new day, and we're going to play for the biggest win of our lives."

DOUBLES RESULTS: 3, 2
1. Duarte Vale/Johannes Ingildsen (UF) vs. Eliot Spizzirri/Siem Woldeab (TEX) 5-5 *unfinished*
2. Sam Riffice/Ben Shelton (UF) vs. Cleeve Harper/Chih Chi Huang (TEX) 6-4
3. Will Grant/Brian Berdusco (UF) def. Micah Braswell/Payton Holden (TEX) 6-2

SINGLES RESULTS: 5, 4, 3
1. Duarte Vale (UF) vs. Eliot Spizzirri (TEX) 6-4, 5-6 *unfinished*
2. Sam Riffice (UF) vs. Micah Braswell (TEX) 6-7, 2-3 *unfinished*
3. Andy Andrade (UF) vs. Siem Woldeab (TEX) 6-3, 7-5
4. Blaise Bicknell (UF) vs. Cleeve Harper (TEX) 6-1, 7-5
5. Ben Shelton (UF) def. Chih Chi Huang (TEX) 6-3, 6-0
6. Josh Goodger (UF) vs. Evin McDonald (TEX) 2-6, 6-4, 3-4 *unfinished*

NOTABLES

This is Florida's fourth time in the Final Four (2000, 2005,2019, 2021) and the second time under Bryan Shelton.
- The Gators have made the Final Four for the second straight NCAA Tournament
UF advanced for the first time to the final of the NCAA Tournament (1-3 in the Final Four).
Since 2017, Florida has improved its NCAA Tournament finish each year.
- 2017: Round of 16
- 2018: Elite Eight
- 2019: Final Four
- 2020: No Tournament (COVID)
- 2021: NCAA Championship