Billy Federhofer knocked on wood when asked about his current winning streak.
He hasn’t lost a match for the Gators since Feb. 9. In that stretch he has five victories.
“I feel like every match I go into it thinking, ‘If I win, we have a good chance of winning today, and if I lose we probably will lose,’” Federhofer said. “I’m just trying to take care of my court and trust the other guys to come through.”
Federhofer will put his win streak on the line for No. 18 Florida (8-6, 2-2 Southeastern Conference) when it travels to No. 26 Alabama (12-5, 3-2 SEC) today at 4.
Federhofer led UF to an upset victory over then-No. 6 Tennessee on Sunday. The win soared the Gators 17 spots up in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings for the week.
Coach Bryan Shelton has been pleased with the senior’s performance as of late.
“He competes at a very high level every time when he is on the court,” Shelton said. “His game style presents some difficulties for the opposition. He is a lefty and there aren’t many lefties out there, and he brings a nice contrast of shots … to his opponents.”
Being one of two seniors on the team comes with some leadership responsibilities. The other senior is Bob van Overbeek, who hasn’t won a match since Feb. 3. During that time, he has eight losses for the Gators, and he has been dropped from the No. 1 singles position to No. 2.
“He is getting close to breaking through,” Shelton said. “He just needs to see the match to completion, and he has put the extra work in to get better.”
Federhofer believes van Overbeek is talented to beat anyone in the country, and he has been telling him that to boost his confidence.
“It doesn’t matter if you lost or won the last match, the next match is totally different,” Federhofer said. “In the SEC, everyone is close as you can see, and he is talented to go out there and beat anyone on any given day.”
Senior Billy Federhofer returns a volley during Florida’s 5-2 win against Miami on Jan. 19 at Linder Stadium. Federhofer hasn't lost a match since Feb. 9.
