The UF men’s tennis team is heading into the dual season ranked No. 11 in the country and with high expectations of success.
At first glance, the Gators look as if they will feed off the experience and leadership of upperclassmen such as seniors Elliott Orkin and Maxx Lipman and juniors Chase Perez-Blanco and Jordan Belga.
However, the players with the most momentum heading into Saturday’s matchups against Georgia Southern and Kennesaw State are both underclassmen.
Sophomore Alfredo Perez and freshman Johannes Ingildsen are a doubles duo that has found success in both singles and doubles play.
The nation’s No. 3 ranked collegiate doubles pairing went 8-1 in the Fall. Their only loss came via tiebreak in the second round of the ITA National Indoor Championships in Flushing, New York, where the pair went on to win the doubles consolation title.
For Ingildsen, Saturday will be his first match of team play as well as his first match at the Ring Tennis Complex.
Over the course of the Fall season, Ingildsen posted an impressive 12-4 record in singles play and a 12-2 record in doubles.
And despite his immediate success, coach Bryan Shelton knows that a player’s first team match can cause some nerves.
“It’ll be good to see him out there and see him try to shake off some of those early season jitters and really start focusing on what he needs to do to be effective out there on the court,” Shelton said. “I think the quicker he can hit his stride out there and relax and really just enjoy battling, the better we’ll all be.”
However, the opposite will be expected of Perez.
Despite only being a sophomore, Perez has already experienced heavy success as a Gator and has garnered high expectations for 2017.
“I think that Alfredo has really established himself as one of the top collegiate players in the country in both singles and doubles,” said Shelton. “For him to be one of the main leaders of this team in that regard, it’ll be important for us as a team.”
Perez holds a 20-5 (12-2 in the SEC) singles record in dual play and 43-13 overall singles record as a Gator. His doubles record in dual play is impressive as well at 14-4 (8-3 in the SEC).
And the Gators will need Perez as a leader this season when they face top-10 teams such as No. 1 Virginia, No. 3 Ohio State and No. 6 Georgia.
Contact Mark Stine at mstine@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @mstinejr.
Alfredo Perez returns a pass during Florida's 6-1 win over Troy on Jan. 17, 2016, at the Ring Tennis Complex.
