Ingrid Neel was angry.
The lone freshman on the Gators women’s tennis team was down 1-0 in her second set when she disagreed with an umpire’s ruling. After arguing with the umpire to no avail, Neel gave in and was now down 2-0. That’s when she decided to get even.
Dropping only one point in three games, Neel played aggressively to quickly put herself up 3-2, and she didn’t stop there. After losing her first set 6-3, the rookie rose up to defeat Ole Miss’ Natalie Suk 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 and give the Gators the 4-0 win on Friday.
“She’s just a gamer,” coach Roland Thornqvist said. “It’s just amazing because she got waxed in the first set, but she’s a gamer. She fights. She’s smart, and she can raise her level in the middle of a match.”
While the Gators did manage to shut out the Rebels on Friday, the score was no indication of the woes they faced in singles play. The Gators dominated doubles, winning 6-2, 6-2 with Neel and Anna Danilina play on Court 1.
However, singles proved to be a battle for Florida as multiple matches either went into tiebreakers or third sets.
Anna Danilina was the exception, as she was off the court quickly and easily with a 6-2, 6-1 victory over Ole Miss’ Tea Jandric.
However, the competition picked up after Danilina’s win. Courts 1, 3 and 5 went to tiebreaker sets as Belinda Woolcock and Brooke Austin won, and Josie Kuhlman dropped her first set. Although there was no tiebreaker involved, Neel also dropped her first set 6-3 to the Rebels’ Natalie Suk.
After playing like a “machine,” as Thornqvist described it, Woolcock was next off the court for the Gators as she won 7-6, 6-3 over Arianne Hartono. Then, after a frustrating fight, Neel took the match for the Gators.
Sunday was a different story as Thornqvist said the team was much more focused. This was evident in the final score, as Florida secured a 7-0 sweep over Mississippi State.
The doubles duos of Kuhlman/Woolcock and Austin/Kourtney Keegan took another easy doubles point as both won their sets 6-2.
While Florida’s singles matches were mentally tough on Sunday, the Gators found a way to grind it out on all courts.
After dominating the Bulldogs’ Madison Harrison, Kuhlman was off the singles court first with a double-bagel victory.
Danilina was next for the Gators, winning 6-4, 6-0 over Anastasia Rentouli. Although she had to work to wear down her opponent, Woolcock followed Danilina with a 6-3, 6-1 victory over Jasmine Lee.
But while Woolcock’s win clinched the match for the Gators, Mississippi State coach Daryl Greenan wanted to play on, so Florida finished the rest of its matches.
Spencer Liang quickly finished her set, beating Sara Lizariturry 6-2, 6-4. Neel faced another battle on Sunday, winning 6-1, 7-6 over MSU’s Lisa Marie Rioux. Her tiebreaker went 26 points deep, as she eventually won 14-12 and clinched her match.
And finally, after not playing her best tennis, Keegan found a way to win 7-6, 6-4 over the Bulldog’s Khrystyna Vozniak.
Contact Spencer Thompson at sthompson@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @spencemthompson.
UF's Ingrid Neel hits a backhand during Florida's 4-2 win against Oklahoma State on Feb. 18, 2017, at the Ring Tennis Complex.
