Tied at 40 all in the game and leading 5-0 in the match, Ingrid Neel stepped up to serve. With laser focus, the freshman struck the ball and delivered an ace, winning her doubles match 6-0 alongside partner Anna Danilina.
This was just the start of a strong outing for Florida on Sunday, as it advanced to the NCAA Round 16 with a decisive 4-1 win over Miami.
Florida starting off easy with solid doubles play. After Neel and Danilina got the shutout, Josie Kuhlman and Belinda Woolcock secured the doubles point with a 6-2 win over the Hurricanes’ Maci Epstein and Silvia Fuentes. Miami coach Paige Yaroshuk-Tews described the doubles victory as the turning point of the match.
“From that point, Florida just increased their energy and got really confident,” she said. “We went in the other direction.”
The Gators were able to carry their momentum into singles play where they continued to command the match. Neel was first off the court for Florida with a 6-2, 6-1 win over Miami’s Dominika Paterova. Within a minute, Brooke Austin put the Gators up 3-0 with a 6-2, 6-2 win.
The Hurricanes then managed to get on the board as Estela Perez-Somarriba dominated Kuhlman 6-2, 6-2.
Holding a 3-1 lead, it was Danilina who would clinch the match with a 6-0, 6-3 win, her 10th straight singles victory.
“We came out strong and did what we had to do to win against this team,” Danilina said. “They had a lot of good players who fight until the end, so you have to win it yourself otherwise they’re not going to give it to you.”
Florida coach Roland Thornqvist said that his team showed up ready for this match and displayed no signs of rusty play after the nearly three weeks off the team had following the SEC tournament.
The Gators will now turn their attention to the Round of 16 in Athens, Georgia, where they’ll play the winner Texas A&M at 7 p.m. on Friday. Florida will leave for Georgia on Tuesday, but for now the team is focused on having fun and enjoying the moment.
“One thing they’ve done a really good job of is making it fun and not feeling any pressure,” Thornqvist said. “You can tell they’re enjoying being out there. I think that’s really important. No matter what match is coming, we’re really going to emphasize that they enjoy it.”
Contact Spencer Thompson at sthompson@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @spencemthompson.
Ingrid Neel returns a ball during Florida's 4-2 win over Oklahoma State on Feb. 18, 2017, at the Ring Tennis Complex.
