GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The No. 18 Florida women's tennis team trailed early and couldn't overcome the deficit against No. 68 Kentucky on Sunday afternoon at the Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex, falling 4-2.
 
For Florida (8-4, 3-2 SEC), doubles play started strong against Kentucky (8-6, 2-3 SEC) thanks to a dominant showing once again from No. 60 Carly Briggs/Rachel Gailis on court two. Jumping out to a 3-0 lead, the Gators pair converted three breaks on Ellie Eades/Zoe Hammond's serve and cruised to the 6-2 victory for their sixth consecutive win.
 
At the third doubles position, Emma Shelton/Sophie Williams fell behind 2-0 early, but equalized by winning the next two games. Lidia Gonzales/Florencia Uruttia broke Shelton/William's serve to go up 5-3, however, the Florida duo broke back before Gonzales/Uruttia managed to convert another break for the 6-4 victory. This left it up to court one with Alicia Dudeney/Bente Spee hoping to convert a break down 5-4 on Carlota Molina/Elizabeth Steven's serve, but Kentucky held strong to snatch the doubles point.
 
Kentucky tacked on another point for the 2-0 lead with a victory on court six, as Maialen Morante brought down Shelton, 6-2, 6-0. Needing wins in four of the remaining five singles matches, Dudeney brought the Gators back within one by dominating both sets, 6-2, 6-2 at court two over Eades and extending her winning streak to four matches.
 
After dropping the first set, No. 47 Briggs recorded a bagel on No. 74 Florencia Urrutia to force a deciding third-set and potentially shifting the match's momentum back in Florida's favor. Yet, Urrutia only allowed Briggs to win her first service game and regained her composure to win the following six games completing the triumph.
 
Down 3-1, all three remaining courts were locked in third-set deciders. Playing at the four position for the first time in her career, Emily De Oliveira jumped out to a 4-0 advantage to earn the opening frame, 6-3 over Gonzalez, but dropped the second, 6-1. The sophomore showcased her resiliency and won the first two games to propel her to a clinical 6-1 third-set applying pressure on Kentucky once again.
 
Kentucky secured the victory on court three in a back-and-forth match between Gailis and Molina. Despite dropping the first 6-3, Gailis continue to battle in the second and soared through the set, 6-1. Though the Wildcat returned to her performance in the first and secured the match, 6-3.
 
Florida shifts their focus to Michigan on Wednesday, 3 p.m. at the Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex before a pair of SEC road matches this next weekend.
 
QUOTES FROM THE COURT
Head Coach Roland Thornqvist
On the loss to Kentucky…
"I thought Kentucky was the tougher team. I thought we had made really good progress, to be honest with you, didn't see this coming when I woke up this morning. We were really tough on Friday and competed really hard. We lacked in that department today. But, it's a young team. Sometimes you have some of these ups and down performances with a lot of newbies in the lineup. Kentucky did a good job. They played aggressive doubles and then held on to the ball under pressure in singles. Tough pill to swallow for sure because I thought we were really doing well and now we have to go back to the drawing board and figure stuff out by Wednesday."
 
DOUBLES RESULTS
1. Carlota Molina/Elizabeth Stevens (UK) def. Alicia Dudeney/Bente Spee (UF), 6-4
2. No. 60 Carly Briggs/Rachel Gailis (UF) def. Ellie Eades/Zoe Hammond (UK), 6-2
3. Lidia Gonzales/Florencia Uruttia (UK) def. Emma Shelton/Sophie Williams (UF), 6-4
Order of Finish: 2, 3, 1
 
SINGLES RESULTS
1. No. 74 Florencia Urrutia (UK) def. No. 47 Carly Briggs (UF), 6-3, 0-6, 6-1
2. Alicia Dudeney (UF) def. Ellie Eades (UK), 6-2, 6-2
3. Carlota Molina (UK) def. Rachel Gailis (UF), 6-3, 1-6, 6-3
4. Emily De Oliveira (UF) def. Lidia Gonzalez (UK), 6-3, 1-6, 6-1
5. Bente Spee (UF) vs Zoe Hammond (UK), 6-4, 1-6, 5-3, unfinished
6. Maialen Morante (UK) def. Emma Shelton (UF), 6-2, 6-0
Order of Finish: 6, 2, 1, 4, 3

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