The Florida men’s tennis team will feature eight different Gators this weekend at the Ring Tennis Complex for the ITA Southeast Regional Championships.
Gainesville will host close to 100 tennis players from 15 different schools, as spots to compete in the ITA National Fall Championships in Newport Beach, California, are on the line. The eight Gators competing this weekend are Johannes Ingildsen, Andy Andrade, Duarte Vale, Josh Goodger, Brian Berdusco, Lukas Greif, Greysen Cacciatore and Blaise Bicknell. Among those who competed on Thursday was sophomore Cacciatore. The Gainesville-native entered the tournament on a four-match win streak after claiming the Singles B title at the Bedford Cup.
Despite starting hot and extending his win streak to five after defeating Mercer’s Carver Arant, Cacciatore couldn’t outlast Florida Gulf Coast’s Feliksas Sakalauskas and failed to qualify for the main draw. After receiving a first-round bye, the sophomore had no trouble defeating Arant in straight sets to advance to the final qualifying round. Cacciatore took the early advantage against Sakalauskas, winning the first set 6-4, but wouldn’t take another set for the rest of the match, losing his chances of competing with his fellow Gators in the main draw.
Cacciatore was eliminated from singles play, but he remains alive in doubles, playing in the main draw alongside freshman Bicknell. The other seven Gators will see their first action on their home court starting Friday morning.
Follow Victor Prieto on Twitter @victorprieto_11. Contact him at vprieto@alligator.org
Sophomore Greysen Cacciatore split his two singles matches Thursday, failing to qualify.
