After Friday’s match against Georgia, the Gators women’s tennis team’s players walked off the court with their heads down. As fans left the Ring Tennis Complex, they voiced their disbelief.
“I never thought I’d see the day,” one said.
“Well, we knew it had to happen eventually,” said another.
On Friday, Florida lost its first home game since 2004, breaking the longest active streak in the NCAA and giving the Gators their first loss of the season.
After losing to the Gators 4-1 in February’s National Indoor Championships, Georgia dominated Florida on all fronts. As Florida lost the doubles point for only the third time this season, Georgia continued to command the Gators for the remainder of the match.
Josie Kuhlman and Belinda Woolcock were first off the doubles court, winning their match 6-3. The next two matches ended in tiebreaker sets as Georgia won 7-5 on courts one and two.
The Bulldogs then got off to a quick start in singles as Ellen Perez dominated Woolcock 6-2, 6-1 and Elena Christofi beat Ingrid Neel by the same score to give Georgia a quick 3-0 lead.
Kuhlman provided Florida some relief when she put her team on the board by beating Caroline Brinson 6-3, 6-0. Then, in thrilling fashion, Georgia’s Mariana Gould gave the Bulldogs the win by beating Kourtney Keegan in a contested tiebreaker set to win 6-2, 7-6 (5).
As the Gators were visibly and vocally frustrated, coach Roland Thornqvist said the Gators’ lack of confidence was the difference in the match.
“We did not play particularly well. We certainly didn’t look confident, and that’s the one thing that irks me a little bit,” Thornqvist said. “If we were a little weak emotionally today, (Georgia) was able to expose it. And you’ve got to give them credit. It’s not an easy thing to do.”
After Thornqvist said he “couldn’t care less” about the end of the streak, the Gators entered Sunday’s match against Tennessee determined to bounce back. They did just that, sweeping the Volunteers 4-0.
From the beginning, the Gators were dominant. After winning the doubles point 6-0, 6-0, it was clear that Florida had regained its confidence.
In singles, the Gators controlled the match on almost every court. Kuhlman was first to finish, beating Johanna Silva 6-0, 6-2. Neel was next off the court after dominating Sadie Hammond 6-0, 6-3. Brooke Austin then handed Florida the game by defeating Gabby Schuck 6-1, 6-3.
Thornqvist said the team returned to its all-business mindset just hours after the loss to Georgia. Practicing Saturday morning, he said everyone on the team was all in.
“We knew where we were inadequate on Friday night, and we were hell bound on changing that,” Thornqvist said. “It started yesterday in practice…today we were excellent.”
Contact Spencer Thompson at sthompson@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @spencemthompson.
UF coach Roland Thornqvist looks on during Florida's 4-2 win against Oklahoma State on Feb. 18, 2017, at the Ring Tennis Complex.
