Freshman Sydney Berlin was in a familiar position.
Just two days ago, the Gators were squared at three against Kentucky as Berlin and UK’s Anastasia Tkachenko fought for the final point.
Kentucky prevailed.
She had another opportunity on Sunday against Vanderbilt to clinch the victory for Florida in her second SEC match but fell short again.
The No. 31 Gators lost 4-3 to No. 5 Vanderbilt at the Currey Tennis Center in Nashville, Tennessee, after fighting their way out of a 3-0 hole.
“Sydney (Berlin) carried herself really well when the attention shifted to her court, and I was very proud of that,” coach Roland Thornqvist said in a release. “Going up against a high-caliber veteran player, she definitely held her own ... it’s just so valuable for younger players to play in moments like that.”
No. 97 Emily Smith proved too much for her in the 6-3, 6-3 loss.
Florida (7-8, 4-4 SEC) started the day at a disadvantage after dropping the doubles point to the defending national runner-ups.
Vanderbilt’s Emma Kurtz and Smith made very quick work of sophomores Victoria Emma and McCartney Kessler on Court 1 in a 6-1 rout. No. 37 Fernanda Contreras and Summer Dvorak finished off the freshman duo of Marlee Zein and Berlin 6-3 to claim the opening point. Berlin, filling in for Anastasia Kharitonova, and Zein played their first match together this season.
The Commodores (11-5, 6-2 SEC) rode their momentum into singles play by picking up victories on Courts 3 and 5 to take a commanding three-point lead. No. 67 Emma managed to win just three games against No. 62 Georgia Drummy in a 6-0, 6-3 loss, while Tsveta Dimitrova fell to Vanderbilt’s Carolyn Campana 6-4, 6-2.
Florida’s top ranked players wouldn’t have it, though.
No. 16 Jarlskog and No. 38 Kessler picked up two victories on Courts 1 and 2 to put Florida on the board.
Jarlskog claimed her first top-10 win over No. 6 Contreras 6-2, 6-4 to pick up a team-best 10th singles win this season. Kessler defeated No. 13 Christina Rosca in three sets (2-6, 6-3, 6-1) to win her fifth-straight singles match.
“I’m proud to see us fight back after starting off so poorly in doubles and at the beginning of singles,” Thornqvist said. “We really changed our mindset and showed tremendous resiliency and resolve to come back the way we did.”
Zein subsequently finished off Dvorak 1-6, 6-2, 6-4 to tie the match at 3-3, but Berlin failed to complete the comeback. Florida’s struggles of closing tight matches has been a common motif this season.
The loss to Vanderbilt marks the seventh time this season a match for Florida has ended 4-3. The Gators have been on the losing side six times.
“I feel bad for our players after this one because they really gave it all they had,” Thornqvist said. “It was all you can ask for. But like I’ve talked about a lot this season, we continue to grow collectively and experiences like these are truly invaluable for a group as young as ours.”
Follow Victor Prieto on Twitter @victorprieto_11 and contact him at vprieto@alligator.org.
Victoria Emma (pictured) fell to Vanderbilt’s Georgia Drummy 6-0, 6-3 on Sunday in Florida’s 4-3 loss to the Commodores.
