For the third time this season, the UF's women tennis team drubbed South Carolina.
But Sunday's 4-0 shutout of the Gamecocks was far more meaningful than the others, as the No. 2 seeded Gators (26-1) wrapped up their NCAA Regional and earned a berth in the championship round of the NCAA Tournament hosted by Stanford in Palo Alto, Calif.
Florida will face Clemson on Friday at 3 p.m.
The Gators started lightning-quick Sunday at Linder Stadium, contrasting Saturday's sluggish start in the first round against South Carolina State.
Junior Joanna Mather and freshman Olivia Janowicz clinched the doubles point for UF, notching an 8-3 win on Court 3. Mather and sophomore Allie Will said coach Roland Thornqvist addressed the team before the match about starting fast.
"We hadn't played a match in so long coming into [Saturday's] match, so that had something to do with the slower start," Will said. "But today we got out there, and we were ready to play."
"Maybe the rain had something to do with that as well," Mather said, referring to Saturday's six-hour rain delay. "We kind of sat around all day, anticipating and not knowing whether we were going to play or not. We were a little antsy and almost too ready to play."
Thornqvist said his team looked rusty Saturday, but "showed great hunger" against South Carolina. Nothing was more indicative of an aggressive approach than Will's business-like 6-0, 6-0 singles win on Court 1.
"I thought Allie was outstanding. She beat a really good player 6-0, 6-0 and that's difficult to do," Thornqvist said. "If she plays like she did today, she'll be a handful for whoever. She's wickedly competitive. She's as fit as she's been, and she's moving as well as she has."
Will's win came in just 60 minutes, setting the tone for the remainder of the match. Mather and freshman Alex Cercone finished things up with straight-sets wins of their own.
Cercone is part of a freshman class that is experiencing its first NCAA Tournament. The trio of Cercone, Janowicz and Sofie Oyen held their own over the weekend, keeping up with Thornqvist's high expectations.
Florida's coach said the trip to Stanford is exactly what his team has been playing for all year. After a season filled with dominating performances, including an undefeated record in the Southeastern Conference and a second consecutive SEC Tournament Championship, Florida will lay everything on the line beginning Friday.
"This is what we trained for, since August 25th, when we laced them up," Thornqvist said. "Making this trip out west is why we do what we do every week."
