After winning a title at the Southeastern Conference Fall Classic in September, much was anticipated of the Gators in the first national championship of the season in Tulsa, Okla.
A week later, six of the nine Florida men’s tennis players flew out west for the 2014 ITA Men’s All-American Championships.
Beginning in the first round of pre-qualifying matches were two upset losses from Josh Wardell and Oliver Landert. Florida consistently faced defeat after defeat as Diego Hidalgo dropped Round 2 of pre-qualifying matches and Maxx Lipman and Elliott Orkin dropped in round one of the qualifying matches.
Though junior Gordon Watson did not come back with a guaranteed seat for the National Indoor Collegiate Championships, he cleared his matches best on the team. Ranked No. 70 in the country, Watson dropped his first round of main draw singles to Indiana’s No. 66 Sam Monette (6-2, 6-2). The captain of this season’s team brought some grit to the court, after losing to fellow-Gator Orkin in the SEC Fall Classic.
"I think he was motivated. I think when you take a tough loss, even if to a teammate, you try to start finding the answers," coach Bryan Shelton said. "I think Gordon did a little bit of soul searching and wanted to figure out what he needed to do better, especially leading into the next tournament. I think that mentality helped him starting out the tournament out in Tulsa and getting a couple wins under his belt out early."
High expectations soon unravelled for Orkin, the champion of the SEC Fall Classic, as he dropped in his first game in round one of qualifying singles to Baylor’s Felipe Rios (1-6, 6-2, 6-0). Ranked No. 66, he pulled a win in consolation singles to Danil Zelenkov from George Washington (7-6 (1), 6-3).
"I think Elliott learned a good lesson knowing that he’s always gotta go out there with a chip on his shoulder," Shelton said. "He’s not the tallest guy in the world, but he’s got speed and he’s got toughness and he’s got to rely on those two things as well as his ball striking to be successful out there on the court… When he’s got all those things clicking in his favor, he’s dangerous."
Shelton said the team didn’t have great results, but the tournament was good for the team to be humbled early in the season.
"Go out there and take some losses, get that chip back on our shoulder where it should be," Shelton said.
As the third-year coach preps the team for the USTA/ITA Regionals in Athens, Ga., on Oct. 16, he said Florida is focusing on the importance of controlling the second serve.
"The person that wins the most points on second serve is usually the guy that wins the match," Shelton said.
Follow Mary Francis on Twitter @_maryfrancis
UF men's tennis coach Bryan Shelton walks on the Ring Tennis Complex courts prior to Florida's 5-2 win against North Florida on Jan. 22
