The Gators showed up at 8:30 a.m. Saturday for their 10 a.m. match against Furman. At 8:15 p.m., after a 10-hour rain delay, the two teams finally squared off in the opening match of ITA Kick-Off Weekend.
Skipping the doubles portion of the match and going straight into singles, the Gators men’s tennis team won 4-0.
“We did very good in a difficult situation,” said Florida head coach Andy Jackson. “We got off the court quick which was what we needed to do.”
Sophomore Joey Burkhardt finished first, winning 6-1, 6-3 in 58 minutes.
“That shows great leadership,” Jackson said. “Getting a big jump early in a team match like that almost makes it feel like it’s worth two points.”
No. 7 junior Alexandre Lacroix bounced back from his loss at Baylor by clinching the victory for UF winning 6-1, 6-3.
The No.11 Gators play in the championship match of kick-off weekend Sunday at 1 p.m. for a chance to travel to Charlottesville, Va and play in the ITA Team Indoor Championships.
The No. 8 Gators women’s tennis team will also be competing for the kick-off weekend championship following its 4-0 win over No. 67 BYU on Friday.
“It was quick, but definitely harder than the other dual matches I’ve played so far,” said senior Anastasia Revzina.
Revzina secured Florida’s first singles point, finishing in 48 minutes.
UF’s other senior, Marrit Boonstra, helped the Gators win their first doubles set and ended the match when she won her singles set clinching a Florida victory.
“BYU is the best team we’ve faced to this point in the season,” said UF head coach Roland Thornqvist.
Thornqvist said that as the competition gets better his team will need to be prepared for tougher sets and to play deeper into sets.
The Gators’ play No. 31 FIU Sunday at 10 a.m. The winner will go to Madison, Wis. to play in the ITA Team Indoor Championships.
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