Nineteen games into the season, Roland Thornqvist doesn’t have his lineup figured out.
He said the Gators are so deep that it really depends on how they’re doing that particular week. This past week, with two players out with the flu and very little practice, Thornqvist was forced to make a change.
While multiple players shifted positions this weekend, one stole the show. Junior Josie Kuhlman has mainly played on Court 4 this season but was promoted to Court 2 to accommodate the team’s sick players. After her performance this weekend, Thornqvist is using her dominance as an example for the rest of the team.
“That was the best tennis I’ve seen played on our courts in a few years, really,” Thornqvist said. “I’m really proud of Josie and what she’s doing, and it’s really helping us.”
It’s not just Kuhlman’s performance Thornqvist is highlighting. He described her freshman year as flawless, but said she was disappointed with her sophomore year. Now a junior, Thornqvist said she’s competing at her highest level yet, so he wants to use her determination and grit to show his team that hard work pays off.
“(She) never wavered in her commitment to improving,” he said. “She’s reaping the reward of all her hard work throughout these three years. And not just when things go our way. She worked just as tirelessly last year, if not more so.”
Kuhlman’s attitude during practice is another thing Thornqvist wants his team to learn from her. He said the team’s habits at practice are sometimes spotty, and that’s something he would like to change. In a brutal SEC season, practice really can mean everything, and he said this is where Kuhlman comes in yet again.
“On a long enough time scale, everything reverts back to the mean,” Thornqvist said. “The way to push the mean forward is to practice well. It doesn’t just happen on Friday nights and Sundays. You’ve got to do it in practice every week. Players like Josie get that.”
Contact Spencer Thompson at sthompson@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @spencemthompson.
UF's Josie Kuhlman hits a backhand during Florida's 4-2 win against Oklahoma State on Feb. 18, 2017, at the Ring Tennis Complex.
