After winning its first two matches of the year, the Gators men’s tennis team heads into its first big tournament of the year.
No. 13 Florida (2-0) opens the 2015 ITA Kick Off by facing Ole Miss (1-0) at 11 a.m. on Saturday at the Ring Tennis Complex.
South Carolina and Stanford will also be competing in the tournament in Gainesville.
Even though Florida has won its first two meets this season with relative ease, coach Bryan Shelton always believes in a way to get better.
"I feel pretty good about (this weekend)," Shelton said. "I feel like we’ve been practicing well, which is important and I feel like the health of our team is as good as it can be. They have become better at taking care of themselves, taking care of the little things."
Junior Gordon Watson, who made his singles debut last Friday against the Trojans is confident that the teams biggest threat is their chemistry and that will push them to do big things in the ITA tournament.
"I think (chemistry) goes a long way, if someone is down you know it and you can pick them up and this weekend we will just be able to feed off each other and hopefully get the W," Watson said.
The 5-foot-11 Naples native, who is also one of the captains has watched as the younger players have grown over the course of the year.
He is excited to see how well they will compete against higher competition — including the chance to face up to two Southeastern Conference teams in South Carolina and Ole Miss.
"I think (this weekend) will be good for the younger guys to see some of our completion for the SEC because that’s one of our biggest goals this year is to win the SEC," Watson said. "This weekend is huge because of the national indoors but for them to be able to see how its like, the intensity between each team and how different each player is, it will be great for even the captains, Maxx (Lipman) and I and everybody else to see what they have this year."
Chase Perez-Blanco, one of the two true freshmen on the team, has made an impact on Florida’s program thus far since the day he came to UF.
The Miami native believes that him and his teammates are prepared for this weekend and ready to see what results are to come out of their hard work.
"(I’m) definitely ready," Perez-Blanco said. "This (day) has been circled on the calendar and I’ve been preparing and working hard in the gym and on the field and on court and everything. We’re definitely ready to go out there and compete."
The Gators have two wins to show for the beginning of their season.
But Shelton believes that there is much more to show for a match than the scoreboard.
"There’s a lot that goes into going out there and playing great tennis and feel like our team is taking care of the little details well," he said. "I’m excited about the opportunity this weekend."
Follow Caylee Underwood on Twitter @CayUnderwood
Freshman Chase Perez-Blanco hits the ball during Florida's 9-3 win against William & Mary at the Ring Tennis Complex.
