The Gators are bringing out the brooms.
After a not-so-pretty win against No. 32 Florida State, coach Bryan Shelton is ready to sweep away any problems the team has before No. 14 Florida’s next match and Southeastern Conference opener against No. 4 Georgia on Feb. 26.
Shelton said he was pleased to see Florida bring in a win in what he considers one of UF’s worst matches against FSU, but the third-year head coach has not been impressed with the team’s serving this season.
"Fifty percent of the points are over within three shots," Shelton said. "You better serve well and you better return well or else you’re going to be on the losing end of a lot of points."
To help his team improve on its serves, Shelton is setting up brooms on the net to help guide his players to where they should be aiming their serves.
"My coach from years ago brought out the brooms and I loved it," Shelton said. "It really helped my serve, helped me develop my serve and that was the best shot of my game and I credit the brooms for a lot of it."
Although Florida still has 14 days until its next match, Shelton hopes the broom drill will become engraved in his players memory.
"For us, when you’re serving the ball a lot of the times you have to look through the net to see the target you’re aiming for," Shelton said. "What the broom signifies is what we call a primary target. It’s an aid that allows us to focus in on something that usually is not there."
Shelton hopes a couple weeks of practice will break out the talent he knows his players possess.
He believes the Gators are prepared for SEC play, especially after their match against their rival competitor.
"I think playing at Florida State felt like an SEC match," the third year coach said. "They were fired up, the team was fired up, the crowd was fired up…I think that’s the type of atmosphere that we’ll face on the road in the SEC."
Maxx Lipman is looking forward to the second half of UF’s season and has no doubts that the youthful team is prepared for the matches ahead of them.
"I think these next three weeks are a good break. It gives us time to reassess the first quarter of the season and gives us a chance to work on what we’ve been struggling in," the sophomore captain said. "Given these two, three weeks we’ll have a really good opportunity to work on some of our weaknesses and really turn into our strengths going into a really tough SEC season."
Follow Caylee Underwood on Twitter @Cay_Underwood
Coach Bryan Shelton talks with sophomores Elliott Orkin and Maxx Lipman during Florida's 9-3 win against William & Mary on Jan. 10 at the Ring Tennis Complex.
