RESULTS (PDF)
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The No. 11 University of Florida women's tennis team (12-7) fell 4-1 to South Carolina Wednesday evening in the SEC Tournament's quarterfinal round at the Alabama Tennis Stadium as it saw its seven-match winning streak come to a close despite a spirited rally late in the contest.
Meeting for the second time in eight days, the second-seeded Gators and seventh-seeded Gamecocks fought in a highly-contested matchup. Florida was very much in striking distance in crunch time but couldn't overcome the 3-1 edge South Carolina had established.
The final three matches of the all went to third sets and the Gators were in the mix on all three, but South Carolina's Allie Gretkowski defeated
Sara Dahlstrom 6-7, 6-2, 7-5 putting a squash on UF's comeback bid.
No. 104
Layne Sleeth provided the Gators' lone scoring tally on the day, improving her record to 9-1 in dual match action.
With Wednesday's defeat, UF falls to 78-13 all time in SEC Tournament play and 31-2 in the quarterfinal round.
Florida fell behind early as USC claimed the doubles point and couldn't slow down the Gamecocks in singles as they recorded wins on courts two, three and five.
The Gamecocks struck first as they secured the doubles point with victories on the first and third courts. No. 5
McCartney Kessler and
Marlee Zein suffered a 6-2 setback to No. 15 Mia Horvit and Megan Davies on the top court before No. 81
Ida Jarlskog and Sleeth posted a win on court two to equalize. Jarlskog and Sleeth improved to 6-0 on the season with a 6-1 victory over Emma Shelton and Silvia Chinellato.
The doubles point was decided on court three, where despite building a 2-1 edge,
Sydney Berlin and Dahlstrom dropped a 6-3 decision to Gretkowski and Elise Mills.
Singles play saw plenty of back-and-forth action with three first sets going to tie breaks. USC was the first to score in singles as well as it registered a win from the third slot. No. 84 Jarlskog fought but fell 6-4, 6-2 to No. 86 Shelton as the senior saw her five-match winning streak come to an end. Trailing 2-0, Florida received a jolt of energy when No. 104 Sleeth put the finishing touches on a 6-2, 6-2 win over Chinellato on the fourth court.
The Gamecocks extended their lead to 3-1 when court two's verdict fell in their favor. After dropping the first set, No. 46 Zein raced out to a 3-0 lead in the second but couldn't sustain it, falling 6-4, 6-2 to No. 63 Megan Davies.
Needing a win on all three remaining courts, the Gators mounted their offensive on courts one, five and six.
After she had dropped the first set in a tiebreak, 7-6, Dahlstrom rallied back to win her second set and jumped ahead 5-4 in the third. The freshman could not hold on though as Gretkowski stormed back to seal the win for South Carolina with a slim 7-5 victory in the deciding set.
From court six, Berlin battled back from an early deficit of her own and had a major comeback in progress in her third set. Berlin's matchup would come to a halt at 6-7, 6-3, 4-2 as would No. 7 Kessler's on court one. The All-SEC senior looked as if she may nab the Gators' second point but she saw her match go to a third set after the second tiebreak of the prize fight went in favor of her opponent in set two. Kessler's showdown with No. 56 Horvit went unfinished at 7-6, 6-7, 1-1.
After sustaining its first defeat since March 7, UF will now wait to learn of its NCAA seeding which will be announced on May 3.
No. 26 (7th seed) South Carolina 4, No. 11 (2nd seed) Florida 1
Doubles Results
No. 15 Mia Horvit and Megan Davies def. No. 5
McCartney Kessler and
Marlee Zein (UF), 6-2
No. 81 Ida Jarlskog and
Layne Sleeth (UF) def. Emma Shelton and Silvia Chinellato, 6-1
Allie Gretkowski and Elise Mills def. Sydney Berlin and
Sara Dahlstrom (UF), 3-6
Doubles order of finish: 1,2,3
Singles Results
No. 7
McCartney Kessler (UF) vs. No. 56 Mia Horvit, 7-6 (7-2), 6-7 (3-7), 1-1 (Unfinished)
No. 63 Megan Davies def. No. 46
Marlee Zein (UF), 6-3, 7-5
No. 86 Emma Shelton def. No. 84
Ida Jarlskog, 6-4, 6-2
No. 104 Layne Sleeth (UF) def. Silvia Chinellato, 6-2, 6-2
Allie Gretkowski, def. Sara Dahlstrom (UF), 7-6 (7-4), 2-6, 7-5
Sydney Berlin (UF) vs. Elise Mills, 6-7 (6-8), 6-3, 4-2 (Unfinished)
Singles order of finish: 3,4,2,5
Quotes from the Court
Head Coach Roland Thornqvist
Overall thoughts on the match…
"I thought they (South Carolina) took it to us today. They, from the starting gun, were just taking it to us on every court almost. Our two doubles team was impressive. And for the first two and a half hours, it was two doubles and Layne (Sleeth) in singles who really were the only bright spots for us. But to our credit, it looked like honestly at the three-hour mark that we were inches away from stealing it. I thought South Carolina outplayed us the entire match but we were literally one match point away. We had two match points on five, and if we could get that I think we could steal the match.
I told the team after, that you know when you get pummeled like that, most teams just find a way to go away. I thought it was really a credit to our fighting spirit to somehow find a way to maybe get it done. We were inches away but at the same time you really have to give South Carolina credit. They were super motivated from last week's loss clearly, and did a great job from start to finish. This league is just really tough. We have even talent and even teams week in and week out. Playing South Carolina last week and this week again you see they're seventh in our league. That showcases the depth of our league. I thought South Carolina was outstanding today. Sometimes you just have to congratulate your opponent and I certainly think that was the case today."
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