GAINESVILLE, Fla. – For the second time in program history and first time since 1958, the Florida Gators men's tennis team will face the Florida State Seminoles twice in the same week as both teams compete in USTA's College MatchDay at the National Campus in Lake Nona, Fla., on Saturday at 5 p.m. The Gators men's tennis team joins Florida's women's tennis team in Lake Nona as both will take on the Seminoles.
Florida is 2-2 versus Florida State at College MatchDay, and is looking to take the lead against the Noles on Saturday after splitting their last four meetings at the National Campus.
The Gators are coming off a hot week as the team went 2-0 in their regional to qualify for the ITA National Team Indoor Championships. They swept Princeton, 4-0, in the first round, before taking the victory over FSU, 4-1, in the championship round to advance to the indoor championships in Seattle.
Coming into Saturday's match, the Gators are ranked No. 3 in the nation by the USTA/Tennis Channel and the ITA in the latest rankings. With their six wins, Florida State is currently receiving votes in the USTA/TC poll.
During the Princeton match, the Gators won the doubles point as the duo of
Sam Riffice and
Ben Shelton and the No. 55 pair of
Nate Bonetto and
Lukas Greif posted victories.
Will Grant made his 2022 dual match singles debut for Florida and clinched the match with a win at six, 6-3, 6-4.
Against the Seminoles, the Gators were down 1-0 after losing the doubles point, but would come back and win four singles matches in a row to claim the match.
Abedallah Shelbayh posted his first career dual match singles victory after winning at court six, 6-3, 7-5. Senior captain,
Duarte Vale, clinched the match after an incredible comeback victory at court two, 1-6, 6-1, 7-5.
College MatchDay is an event put on by the USTA that allows fans to experience some of the top collegiate tennis teams in the country. The free event features a lot of fan activities, such as a kids' clinic, live music, specialty food and drinks, games and giveaways, all starting at 4 p.m. College MatchDay is officially a sell out as all 2,000 tickets have been reserved. However, there are a limited number of walk-up tickets available on a first-come, first-serve basis.
Scouting the Opponent
For the second time in a week, the Gators are facing Florida State. The Seminoles, who are receiving votes in this week's first USTA/Tennis Channel poll, were an undefeated 6-0 heading into Gainesville last week. Florida dealt Florida State their first loss of the season with a 4-1 victory to qualify for the ITA National Indoor Championships.
The Seminoles were able to sweep UNCW in the first round of the Gainesville regional, 4-0,moving on to the championship round and face the Gators. They also have wins against North Florida, Georgia Southern, South Alabama, Samford and Stetson.
Gators in the rankings
Singles
No. 2
Ben Shelton
No. 61
Mattias Siimar
No. 79
Nate Bonetto
No. 107
Andy Andrade
No. 111
Josh Goodger
Doubles
No. 14
Abedallah Shelbayh/
Mattias Siimar
No. 39
Andy Andrade/
Duarte Vale
No. 51
Andy Andrade/
Mattias Siimar
No. 55
Nate Bonetto/
Lukas Greif
HOW TO FOLLOW ALONG / PARKING
The match will be streamed live on the
TennisONE app for all 12 courts, while a play-by-play call will also be available on the app. Fans not in attendance can also follow along through
live scoring.
Parking is free and is first-come, first-serve in the main Welcome Center parking lot. Overflow parking is located in the USPTA and USTA Florida lots next door.
Men's doubles will be played on Courts 7, 8 and 9, while men's singles matches will take place on Courts 7-12.
FOLLOW THE GATORS
SOCIAL:Â
Twitter |Â
Facebook |Â
Instagram
Â
