The UF’s men’s tennis team did not finish its play at the Southeastern Conference Fall Classic in Nashville, Tenn.
Both freshmen Elliott Orkin and Maxx Lipman reached the consolation singles final round of their first collegiate tournament.
In an odd twist of fate, the two UF rookies were set to play against each other, but they never played the match. The team left early Sunday so they did not miss their flight back to Gainesville.
Orkin was defeated in the second round by Georgia’s Austin Smith. Lipman also lost in the second round to Stefan Lindmark of Ole Miss.
Florida’s seniors were all in singles consolation brackets by the end of Day 2. Florent Diep lost in the fourth round on Friday to Chris Simpson of LSU.
Stephane Piro, with the team’s highest preseason Intercollegiate Tennis Association ranking at No. 39, lost a round earlier than Diep. Piro fell in the third round to Kyle Koch of USC. Mike Alford lost during Thursday’s second round to Rhys Johnson of Vanderbilt.
The Gators lasted longer in the doubles draw. On Saturday, Day 3 of the tourney, sophomore Gordon Watson and Orkin fell to Kyle Koch and Chip Cox of South Carolina. Hernus Pieters and Nathan Pasha of Georgia defeated UF’s Lipman and Piro also in the doubles quarterfinals.
Ryan Lipman, Maxx Lipman’s older brother and ITA’s No. 4 singles player in the nation and a redshirt senior at Vanderbilt University did not compete in the tournament.
The tournament, which was hosted by Vanderbilt, was the first outing of the school year for UF. Tournament results will be factored into ITA’s next rankings list, which will be calculated in November and released at the start of January.
Next, the Gators will play in ITA’s 10-day All-American tournament starting Saturday in Tulsa, Okla.
Follow Erica A. Hernandez on Twitter @EricaAlyssa.
Junior Florent Diep strikes the ball during Florida’s 5-2 victory against Miami on Jan. 19 at Linder Stadium.
