The Florida men’s tennis team gave the home crowd at the Ring Tennis Complex exactly what it wanted in Monday’s home-opener against UCF.
Passion.
Doubles action started off slowly for the Gators, but after an impressive hold of serve on the No. 2 doubles court, junior McClain Kessler turned to the fans and gave an emphatic roar. The crowd responded loudly, matching the team captain’s energy.
The No. 9-ranked Gators battled to defeat the Knights 6-1 after almost dropping the doubles point.
Junior Alfredo Perez and sophomore Johannes Ingildsen, the top-ranked doubles duo in thenation, were upset by UCF’s senior Korey Lovett and freshman Eero Vasa in a 6-4 defeat.
Coach Bryan Shelton wasn’t bothered by the loss, attributing it to early-season nerves.
“We certainly didn’t play our best tonight,” he said. “But it’s great when you can not play your best and still get a win.”
At No. 2 doubles, freshman Duarte Vale and junior McClain Kessler overcame freshmen Mikhail Sokolovskiy and Gabriel Decamps 6-4. To secure the doubles point, freshman Oliver Crawford and senior Chase Perez-Blanco won in a tiebreaker on the No. 3 doubles court, giving Florida a 1-0 advantage heading into singles play.
Both Perez and Ingildsen responded to their doubles loss with strong singles performances. At No. 1 singles, Perez defeated Lovett 6-3, 3-6, 10-2. Ingildsen’s 6-3, 6-2 victory over freshman Gabriel Decamps at the No. 2 singles position secured the fourth and final point necessary for UF to clinch the match.
“Everytime you get a chance to clinch and you do it, it’s special,” Shelton said of Ingildsen.
Freshman Duarte Vale was the only Gator to lose in singles play. After a strong start, Vale fell in three sets to freshman Alan Rubio (4-6, 6-2, 10-4). Crawford and freshman Andy Andrade also earned spots in the singles lineup at No. 4 and No. 5, respectively. The two dominated their matches — winning a combined 24 out of 29 total games played — and earned Florida its first two singles points.
“It was great,” Crawford said about his singles victory. “One of my favorite matches I’ve ever played, honestly.”
The Gators will now prepare for a series of home matches in this weekend’s ITA Kick-Off, starting with a matchup against South Alabama on Saturday at 2 p.m.
Follow Benjamin Brandt on Twitter @bhb1227 and contact him at bbrandt@alligator.org.
Florida men's tennis player teammate McClain Kessler (above) and teammate Duarte Vale defeated UCF doubles pair Mikhail Sokolovskiy and Gabriel Decamps 6-4 on Monday. The Gators as a whole beat the Knights 6-1 for the team's 2018 home opener at the Ring Tennis Complex.
