The future looks bright for Florida’s men’s tennis team after two underclassmen bring home titles.
The Gators opened up the 2015-16 season at the Bedford Cup in Fort Myers and at the Porsche Napa Valley Tennis Classic in Napa Valley, California. The upperclassmen competed in Napa Valley while the underclassmen remained in the state.
Rain and lightning halted play twice during the Bedford Cup, but that didn’t stop the Gators from going undefeated in first round play.
Sophomore Chase Perez-Blanco did not drop a set in the first round of play, as he defeated Florida Atlantic’s Alexander Gitin 6-1, 6-2, and took down North Florida’s Lasse Muscheites 6-4, 6-3 to end the first round.
Freshman Alfredo Perez opened his collegiate career with two straight set wins on Thursday. Perez defeated Stetson’s Graham Ball 6-2, 6-1 to then advance to the round of 16. Perez would go on to beat Karlyn Small of FAMU 6-2, 6-0.
Second round play saw even better showings for the underclassmen. All five players advanced to the semifinals in their respective draws. The Gators went 3-1 in doubles play during the semifinals.
Perez-Blanco and redshirt sophomore Joshua Wardell advanced to the finals in their doubles draw. Freshman McClain Kessler and Perez would fall in the semifinals to UNF’s Zach Goldberg and Muscheites 8-6.
Wardell and Perez-Blanco would go on to win their doubles final match and their singles match ended in a suspension, giving the Gators two titles.
The upperclassmen had a different story to tell.
Senior captain Diego Hidalgo was the only Gator to advance in singles play after the first day in Napa Valley. Hidalgo took down Texas’s George Goldhoff in a 6-3, 6-3 showdown. Fellow senior Gordon Watson and juniors Elliott Orkin and Maxx Lipman all lost in the first round of singles play.
In doubles, Hidalgo and Watson took down USTA duo John McNally and JJ Wolf, 6-4, while Orkin and Lipman would also fall in the opening round of doubles. They lost to California’s Florian Lakat and Oskar Wikberg, 6-4.
On Saturday the Gators competed in the second round of play.
Hidalgo eventually fell to Lakat in a three-set showdown, 2-6, 7-6(3), 6-2. The other Gator upperclassmen would also fall in their respective matches.
Hidalgo and Watson continued their doubles run with a win of 6-3 over Lakat and Wikberg.
“The boys had a tough day,” assistant coach Mark Merklein said in a release. “We have to continue to find answers when we aren’t playing our best.”
Follow Madison Belfour on Twitter @madisonbel4
Chase Perez-Blanco returns a ball during Florida's 4-1 win against Mississippi State on March 13 at the Ring Tennis Complex.
