Friday, March 18
Gainesville, Fla.
5 PM
Florida Gators
6
vs
1
Ole Miss
Gators Remain on Top with 6-1 Victory Against No. 31 Ole Miss
Friday, March 18, 2022 | Men's Tennis
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Gators duo Sam Riffice and Ben Shelton defeated the No. 2 doubles team in the country as the Florida Gators overtook the Ole Miss Rebels, 6-1, on Friday evening at the Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex.
The Gators (13-2, 5-0 SEC) remain undefeated in conference play after winning seven matches against Ole Miss (11-6, 1-3 SEC) on the night.
For the eighth match in a row, the Gators took a 1-0 lead thanks to solid doubles play.
The pairing of Riffice and Shelton prevailed against the No. 2 team of Lukas Engelhardt and Finn Reynolds with a decisive score of 6-3 on court one to give Florida an advantage in doubles.
The Nate Bonetto and Duarte Vale duo on court three were down 4-5 against Nikola Slavic and John Hallquist Lithen when the doubles point was won at No. 2 doubles.
The No. 54-ranked veteran tandem of Andy Andrade and Mattias Siimar would clinch the doubles point against Jan Soren Hain and Simon Junk. Taking a 4-3 lead, the Gators pair won the next two games to solidify the lead heading into singles. With this win, Siimar also collected his 97th career doubles victory.
Florida took five of six singles matches from the Rebels to pick up their fifth SEC win of the season.
Freshman Abedallah Shelbayh made his second start in a row at court six, picking up another quick win for the Gators. He took on No. 104 Hain and won in straight-sets by a score of 6-1, 6-3, for his first ranked dual match victory of the season.
Senior Josh Goodger was next on the board with a straight-set win at court five. Taking on Junk, Goodger picked up his third dual match singles victory with a score of 7-5, 6-4.
Ole Miss would get a point back as Engelhardt defeated No. 93 Andrade, 7-6 (3), 6-3, at court four.
Florida only needed one more win to secure the victory, and No. 1 Shelton, for the fifth time this season, provided the clinching match at court one. Taking on No. 21 Slavic, Shelton won his first set 6-3, then fell in the second by the reversed score. The Gator ended up winning his match with a 6-3 third set for his sixth top-25 singles win since Feb. 19.
Over at court two, No. 56 Riffice put together an exciting comeback against Reynolds. The captain fell in the first set by a 6-4 score, but wasn't down long as he tied the match with a 6-2 second set. Winning his third set with a 6-3 score, Riffice solidified his victory and now moves to 6-0 at No. 2 singles and 4-0 in SEC play.
Vale, the 109th-ranked player by the ITA, put the Rebels away after his three-set victory at No. 3 singles. The senior won set one, 6-2, before dropping the next set by a 6-4 score. Vale rallied back to win set three, 6-4, to give the Gators a 6-1 victory over Ole Miss, while also tallying his sixth win at court three this season.
UP NEXT: The Gators continue their home SEC slate with a match against No. 28 Mississippi State on Sunday, March 20 at 1 p.m.
SINGLES RESULTS
1. #1 Ben Shelton (UF) def. #21 Nikola Slavic (OM), 6-3, 3-6, 6-3
2. #56 Sam Riffice (UF) def. Finn Reynolds (OM), 4-6, 6-2, 6-3
3. #109 Duarte Vale (UF) def. J. Hallquist Lithen (OM), 6-2, 4-6, 6-4
4. Lukas Engelhardt (OM) def. #93 Andy Andrade (UF), 7-6 (7-3), 6-3
5. Josh Goodger (UF) def. Simon Junk (OM), 7-5, 6-4
6. Abedallah Shelbayh (UF) def. #104 Jan Soren Hain (OM), 6-1, 6-3
Order of Finish: 6, 5, 4, 1, 2, 3
DOUBLES RESULTS
1. Sam Riffice/Ben Shelton (UF) def. #2 Lukas Engelhardt/Finn Reynolds (OM), 6-3
2. #54 Andy Andrade/Mattias Siimar (UF) def. Jan Soren Hain/Simon Junk (OM), 6-3
3. Nate Bonetto/Duarte Vale (UF) vs. J. Hallquist Lithen/Nikola Slavic (OM), 4-5, unfinished
Order of Finish: 1, 2
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The Gators (13-2, 5-0 SEC) remain undefeated in conference play after winning seven matches against Ole Miss (11-6, 1-3 SEC) on the night.
For the eighth match in a row, the Gators took a 1-0 lead thanks to solid doubles play.
The pairing of Riffice and Shelton prevailed against the No. 2 team of Lukas Engelhardt and Finn Reynolds with a decisive score of 6-3 on court one to give Florida an advantage in doubles.
The Nate Bonetto and Duarte Vale duo on court three were down 4-5 against Nikola Slavic and John Hallquist Lithen when the doubles point was won at No. 2 doubles.
The No. 54-ranked veteran tandem of Andy Andrade and Mattias Siimar would clinch the doubles point against Jan Soren Hain and Simon Junk. Taking a 4-3 lead, the Gators pair won the next two games to solidify the lead heading into singles. With this win, Siimar also collected his 97th career doubles victory.
Florida took five of six singles matches from the Rebels to pick up their fifth SEC win of the season.
Freshman Abedallah Shelbayh made his second start in a row at court six, picking up another quick win for the Gators. He took on No. 104 Hain and won in straight-sets by a score of 6-1, 6-3, for his first ranked dual match victory of the season.
Senior Josh Goodger was next on the board with a straight-set win at court five. Taking on Junk, Goodger picked up his third dual match singles victory with a score of 7-5, 6-4.
Ole Miss would get a point back as Engelhardt defeated No. 93 Andrade, 7-6 (3), 6-3, at court four.
Florida only needed one more win to secure the victory, and No. 1 Shelton, for the fifth time this season, provided the clinching match at court one. Taking on No. 21 Slavic, Shelton won his first set 6-3, then fell in the second by the reversed score. The Gator ended up winning his match with a 6-3 third set for his sixth top-25 singles win since Feb. 19.
Over at court two, No. 56 Riffice put together an exciting comeback against Reynolds. The captain fell in the first set by a 6-4 score, but wasn't down long as he tied the match with a 6-2 second set. Winning his third set with a 6-3 score, Riffice solidified his victory and now moves to 6-0 at No. 2 singles and 4-0 in SEC play.
Vale, the 109th-ranked player by the ITA, put the Rebels away after his three-set victory at No. 3 singles. The senior won set one, 6-2, before dropping the next set by a 6-4 score. Vale rallied back to win set three, 6-4, to give the Gators a 6-1 victory over Ole Miss, while also tallying his sixth win at court three this season.
UP NEXT: The Gators continue their home SEC slate with a match against No. 28 Mississippi State on Sunday, March 20 at 1 p.m.
SINGLES RESULTS
1. #1 Ben Shelton (UF) def. #21 Nikola Slavic (OM), 6-3, 3-6, 6-3
2. #56 Sam Riffice (UF) def. Finn Reynolds (OM), 4-6, 6-2, 6-3
3. #109 Duarte Vale (UF) def. J. Hallquist Lithen (OM), 6-2, 4-6, 6-4
4. Lukas Engelhardt (OM) def. #93 Andy Andrade (UF), 7-6 (7-3), 6-3
5. Josh Goodger (UF) def. Simon Junk (OM), 7-5, 6-4
6. Abedallah Shelbayh (UF) def. #104 Jan Soren Hain (OM), 6-1, 6-3
Order of Finish: 6, 5, 4, 1, 2, 3
DOUBLES RESULTS
1. Sam Riffice/Ben Shelton (UF) def. #2 Lukas Engelhardt/Finn Reynolds (OM), 6-3
2. #54 Andy Andrade/Mattias Siimar (UF) def. Jan Soren Hain/Simon Junk (OM), 6-3
3. Nate Bonetto/Duarte Vale (UF) vs. J. Hallquist Lithen/Nikola Slavic (OM), 4-5, unfinished
Order of Finish: 1, 2
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