Excitement filled the Gators’ locker room as coach Roland Thornqvist and the Florida women’s tennis team finished packing for their trip to College Station, Texas, for the SEC Tournament.
The Gators are coming off arguably their hottest three-week stretch of the season, where they defeated three top-25 teams and lost a tight 4-2 match to No. 5 South Carolina at home.
No. 24 Florida plays Ole Miss in the second round of the SEC Tournament on Thursday at 11 a.m.
UF (11-10, 7-6 SEC) enters the tournament as the No. 7 seed, the lowest it has ever ranked in the conference tournament’s 31-year history. Though the Gators sit in the middle of the pack, they still earned a first round bye on No. 2 South Carolina and No. 3 Vanderbilt’s side of the bracket.
“I think we are getting better and getting tougher,” coach Roland Thornqvist said. “The SEC Tournament is house money, really. We are going to compete our butts off, and we are going to do some things with doubles and focus on that more than anything.”
Focusing on doubles is essential for the Gators, who enter postseason play with a 6-8 doubles record. Last time Florida played Ole Miss, it defeated the Rebels 4-1.
UF kicked off its SEC season with a victory on the doubles court from transfer tandem Ida Jarlskog and Tsveta Dimitrova over Anna Vrbenska and Tereza Janatova 6-3, while Anastasia Kharitonova and Marlee Zein clinched the point with a 6-1 win over Alexa Bortles and Cameron Kriscunas.
With the return of Victoria Emma, who was injured for the match, the Gators will likely start No. 42-ranked duo Emma and McCartney Kessler, Jarlskog and Dimitrova, and Zein playing alongside freshman Sydney Berlin. The doubles win was the second of a five-match streak where the Gators clinched the point.
UF holds three singles players ranked in the ITA’s Top 125 with No. 15 Jarlskog, No. 35 Kessler and No. 124 Emma, while Ole Miss has none.
In the last match between the two, the Gators fell in singles just once, on Court 5, when Dimitrova lost to Janatova. Zein and Kharitonova won their matches, and Jarlskog clinched the match victory over Sabina Machalova to give the Gators their first of seven conference victories.
Florida enters the SEC Tournament with a 77-11 all-time record, claiming 20 championships in program history and 27 overall appearances in the conference final. This will be the first time the Gators have played in the second round of the tournament, only being bounced before the semifinals once in program history.
Zein collects SEC honors again
The freshman out of Sugar Land, Texas, took home her second SEC Freshman of the Week title after posting two singles victories and a doubles win over Michigan and South Carolina.
Zein earned her first top-50 victory of the season when she defeated Michigan’s No. 45 Chiara Lommer on Thursday in Florida’s 4-3 win. She also collected her second conference doubles victory — and fifth overall — alongside fellow freshman Berlin when they picked up a crucial victory to clinch the opening point.
She enters her first SEC Tournament holding 10 wins, the second player to reach double-digit victories for Florida this season after Jarlskog. She is projected to play on Court 4.
“Our freshmen aren’t freshmen anymore,” Thornqvist said. “We are going to be ready for whatever comes our way.”
Follow Victor Prieto on Twitter @victorprieto_11 and contact him at vprieto@alligator.org.
Victoria Emma is one of three UF women's tennis singles players ranked in the ITA's top 125. She is ranked No. 124.
