For the second weekend in a row, the UF men’s tennis team will play two matches.
The No. 11 Gators will host the ITA Kickoff tournament, facing off against UNC Wilmington tomorrow. The winning team will face the winner of No. 24 South Florida and LSU on Sunday, while the losing teams will square off in a consolation match.
A week ago, the Gators dominated play against overmatched opponents in Georgia Southern and Kennesaw State, not losing a single individual match in both competitions.
But this week, the Gators will face much tougher opponents that’re looking to make a statement.
“I think that we’re establishing ourselves around the country as a team that other teams want to beat,” UF coach Bryan Shelton said. “So for us, it’s having that mentality that we’re going take their best shot.”
And according to Shelton, the Gators will not only be targeted from a team standpoint but an individual standpoint, as well.
Five of Florida’s players are currently ranked in the ITA top 100, with sophomore Alfredo Perez ranked the highest at No. 13.
“For a guy like Alfredo, he needs to understand… that he’s going to get everyone’s best shot,” Shelton said. “(The opponents) see him as an opportunity for them to move up in the rankings if they can beat him.”
And the same can be said for all of the other ranked UF players.
The only ranked player from any of the three teams Florida can face this weekend is USF sophomore Peter Bertran (No. 77), so opportunity looms large for those players who are unranked and want to change that.
Contact Mark Stine at mstine@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @mstinjr.
Alfredo Perez returns a ball during Florida's 6-1 win over Troy on Jan. 17, 2016, at the Ring Tennis Complex.
