The women’s tennis team ended its Fall season with a doubles championship at the Dick Vitale Clay Court Classic in Lakewood Ranch.
Senior Brianna Morgan and sophomore Anna Danilina took home the title after defeating Vladica Babic and Carla Tur Mari of Oklahoma State, 8-2.
Danilina struggled at first with Morgan when it came to doubles, but over the course of the Fall season the two have found a balance within their playing styles.
When asked about whether the doubles pairing will be seen in the Spring season, coach Roland Thornqvist said "Absolutely."
Although she is a versatile player, Morgan did not see much doubles play in the previous season. Thornqvist admits that may have been a mistake.
"She has certainly gone out of her way to show everyone that she wants to be in the doubles lineup, and it looks like she has proven to us that she does belong."
The Gators have four doubles teams, all of which have shown improvement throughout the season, and Thornqvist said he has confidence in all four teams.
"I would be confident in all four no matter who we put out there. All four teams will play," Thornqvist said.
Although the Gators showed improvement in doubles, Thornqvist said he still wants to see more from the girls in singles play.
The entire Fall season saw only three singles title wins for the Gators.
All three wins came during the season-opener at the Duke Bonk Invitational. Morgan, Belinda Woolcock and Kourtney Keegan all took home titles.
With a two month break ahead of them the Gators need to continue their motivation and momentum for the upcoming season.
Thornqvist said that he doesn’t necessarily need to motivate his team; the crushing defeat against Vanderbilt last season at the NCAA Team Quarterfinals is enough of a motivating factor.
The lineup for the Spring season will be determined by who puts in the effort during the break.
"We’ve done a great job up until Thanksgiving here but it’s about what these players do when they get home," Thornqvist said.
The Gators begin Spring play Jan. 21 at the UNLV Invite in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Follow Madison Belfour on Twitter @madisonbel4
Brianna Morgan awaits a serve during Florida's 4-0 win against Maryland on Jan. 25 at the Ring Tennis Complex. Morgan defeated Georgia Tech's Kendal Woodard, 6-2, 6-3 at the No. 3 position on Saturday to help the Gators advance to the NCAA Tournament Round of 16.
