If the Florida men’s tennis team can continue to display the form it showed in its opening weekend of play, this may be a year to remember.
Against USF on Sunday, the Gators swept all six singles matches and triumphed in two of three doubles.
Florida finished the weekend 18-0 in singles and 8-1 in doubles in the Gator Invitational.
The team of junior Wake Forest transfer Frank Carleton and sophomore Spencer Newman won comfortably 8-3, while sophomore Michael Alford and junior Bob van Overbeek pulled off a gutsy 9-8 (4) victory. Florida surrendered its only loss when the No. 36 pair of senior Nassim Slilam and junior Billy Federhofer fell 9-7 to South Florida’s Yannick Yoshizawa and Oliver Pramming.
The 36th-ranked Slilam fared better in singles, as he outplayed No. 104 Wael Kilani 6-3, 6-2.
With the exception of Alford’s 6-3, 2-6, 6-1 win against USF's Guillermo De Vilchez, the rest of the Gators were dominant in straight-set singles victories.
Florida coach Andy Jackson was pleased with the performance of his team, and said it played well in an event meant to prepare them for the Intercollegiate Tennis Association All-American Championships in October.
“We got a lot of things done this weekend by playing a lot of matches,” Jackson said. “We’ve got another good event next week and then the national championships for individuals the week after. It’s a good start for us.”
Jackson’s emphasis on his players experiencing a lot of matches this fall is even more crucial for Alford (a sophomore). The Tampa native was expected to be a key contributor for the Gators last year, but a broken ankle suffered at the Southeastern Conference Indoor Championships in January ended his season.
“Michael, more than the rest of the players, needs a lot of action right now,” Jackson said. “I was happy that he was able to play four good sets [Sunday] because as he’s able to regain his toughness and confidence, he can be a great contributor for us.”
