The UF doubles pairs walked onto the court for one final bout. After a two-hour battle, a national championship qualifier was about to be determined.
Throughout Saturday afternoon, Florida junior Rachel Gailis and senior Alicia Dudeney traded points against the No. 3 Virginia senior pair of Elaine Chervinsky and Melodie Collard.
With the Waco, Texas, heat bearing down on the Gators, Gailis and Dudeney lined up across from the Cavaliers down, 9-8, in the tiebreaker. The ball flew across the court and Gailis returned it, but with Virginia’s next swing, the contest concluded. Florida’s NCAA Championship hopes came to an end at the hands of Gailis and Dudeney's first loss this season.
After taking the first set dominantly with a 6-1 victory, Florida’s pair struggled in the second. Virginia took advantage of a few poor serve returns by the Gators, notching a 6-3 victory to push the NCAA Doubles Championship semifinal to a third-set tiebreaker.
After competing in four days of NCAA Tournament competition, Florida and Virginia’s top-ranked duos fought through exhaustion.
Gailis and Dudeney were the only UF women’s tennis players to qualify for the NCAA Tournament, the final event on UF’s Fall schedule. The pair of Gators competed in four matches in four days, winning the first three to vault UF into the semifinals, marking Florida’s furthest finish in the tournament since 2015.
UF struggled in the first two rounds of the Waco contest. Seeded in the top half of the bracket, Dudeney and Gailis made quick work of Michigan junior Lily Jones and freshman Jessica Bernales, winning 6-1, 6-3. UF opened the tournament on a five-game run with impressive work from the service line.
After the dominant first-set win, Gailis and Dudeney won the first three games of the second set before the Michigan duo began to trade games down the stretch.
On Thursday, the pair of Gators faced off with the No. 1 seed in the tournament, UCLA senior Elise Wagle and senior Kimmi Hance. The Gators got off to another quick start, taking the first game. From there, the dueling pairs traded points until Florida separated behind Gailis’ performance, winning 6-4.
Florida dominated the second set and never gave away its lead, winning 6-3. The win over the No. 15 duo in the nation was Florida’s highest-ranked victory this season. It also awarded Gailis and Dudeney All-American status as one of the final eight doubles pairs remaining in the bracket.
Following Friday’s win, Florida’s next test came from Duke senior Ellie Coleman and freshman Irina Balus. Florida faced Duke as part of the Kitty Harrison Invitational Sept. 13-15, with Dudeney losing to Coleman in a singles match.
The tables turned between the Blue Devils and Gators this time around, as Gailis and Dudeney won the first game in their third consecutive match. Similar to Thursday, the UF and Duke pairs traded points throughout the first set, but Florida, again behind a strong serving from Gailis, won 6-4.
After the challenging first set, things came much easier for the Gators in the second. Coleman and Balus struggled from the service line, turning multiple double faults down the stretch. Florida earned the victory in the set 6-1.
The NCAA Tournament marked the Gators final event of their Fall season. When its Spring slate starts, UF will host the Florida Invitational on Jan. 11-12.
Contact Noah White at nwhite@alligator.org. Follow him on X at @noahwhite1782
Noah White is a sophomore majoring in journalism and public relations and The Alligator's Women's Tennis Reporter. In his free time, Noah writes some more and plays soccer and volleyball. He also knows more about Liberty League women's soccer than you do.
