COLLEGE STATION, Texas – For the third time this women’s tennis season, the No. 15 Florida Gators gave the No. 2 Georgia Bulldogs fits. But for the second straight match, the Lady Dawgs eventually survived.
After beating Georgia 4-3 earlier this season at Linder Stadium, Florida dropped a 4-2 semifinal match in the Southeastern Conference Tournament. Each time, Florida won the doubles point.
Friday in the NCAA Division I Women’s Tennis Championships Round of 16, the Bulldogs captured the doubles point on way to a 4-2 victory at the Mitchell Tennis Center on the campus of Texas A&M University, ending the season for coach Roland Thornqvist’s gutsy team.
“We were probably underdogs in most of the spots,” Thornqvist said after the Gators (16-10) ended their 26th appearance in the Round of 16 in the 28-year history of the tournament. “But we all felt that we had a chance. We did not play well in doubles and that was the first time in a while that we didn’t. A lot of credit goes to Georgia, because they hit the ball hard and deep, and kept us from doing some things that we like to do in doubles on offense.”
Georgia started quickly in doubles as its No. 3 team of Cameron Ellis and Naoko Ueshima downed Florida’s Brooke Allen and Lauren Wolken, 8-1. The Bulldogs then clinched the doubles point when the sixth-ranked doubles team of Chelsey Gullickson and Nadja Gilchrist beat Florida’s 18th-ranked team, Marrit Boonstra and Joanna Mather, 8-3, at No. 1 doubles.
Florida was ahead at No. 2 doubles where the 50th-ranked team of Jessica Alexander and Anastasia Revzina led Monika Dancevic and Yvette Hyndman 5-4 when Georgia clinched the doubles point.
“I felt that we got off to a little bit of a slow start in singles, because of losing the doubles point and Georgia certainly took advantage of that,” Thornqvist continued. “When we play them, we certainly have to be sharp at everything we do. If we’re not, then you are going to get down real quick.”
Georgia (26-2) jumped to a 2-0 lead when Ellis beat Allen, 6-0, 6-0. But Alexander gave Florida hope at No. 4 singles by beating Dancevic, 6-4, 6-1. The victory left Alexander with a 19-6 record as a freshman.
Boonstra, ranked No. 8 in singles, and ninth-ranked Gullickson were in the midst of a spirited match at No. 1 singles. Gullickson won the opening set, 6-3, but Boonstra rallied back by breaking Gullickson three times on the way to a 6-2 second-set victory. The pair exchanged breaks early in the third set and Gullickson stole another in the sixth game, which proved to be the difference in her 6-3 set victory that gave Georgia a 3-1 lead.
Mather battled back at No. 3 singles against Gilchrist for a 4-6, 6-2, 6-2 victory that closed the Georgia lead to 3-2, and the Gators remaining two singles players, Revzina (No. 2) and Barbara Pinterova (No. 5), were in close matches.
Pinterova was ahead 5-1 in the second set against Ueshima, who then rallied to win the match, 6-3, 7-6 for clinch the match for the Bulldogs. Once the match was clinched, Revzina’s match with Hyndman was ended.
“Our players fought back and gave us a chance,” Thornqvist said. “There was a chance there after an hour and a half where I thought that we were pulling close to even with them. But, in the end, they proved to have too much force. They certainly have a very good team this year. I felt that we did what we could and fought as hard as we could, but they were certainly the better team today.”
Four Gators will remain in College Station, where they will prepare for the NCAA Singles and Doubles Championships, which gets underway on Wednesday. Boonstra and Revzina will compete in both the singles and doubles draws and will be paired with Mather and Alexander, respectively, in the doubles event.
NCAA DIVISION I WOMEN’S TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS
ROUND OF 16
At Mitchell Tennis Complex, Texas A&M, College Station, Texas
No. 2 GEORGIA 4, No. 15 FLORIDA 2
DOUBLES
1. (6) Chelsey Gullickson-Nadja Gilchrist (UGA) def. (18) Marrit Boonstra-Joanna Mather, 8-3.
2. (50) Jessica Alexander-Anastasia Revzina (UF) led Monika Dancevic-Yvette Hyndman, 5-4, DNF.
3. Cameron Ellis-Naoko Ueshima (UGA) def. Brooke Allen-Lauren Wolken, 8-1.
Georgia wins doubles point, 2-0.
SINGLES
1. (9) Chelsey Gullickson (UGA) def. (8) Marrit Boonstra, 6-3, 2-6, 6-3.
2. (55) Yvette Hyndman (UGA) led (40) Anastasia Revzina, 4-6, 7-5, 5-2, DNF.
3. Joanna Mather (UF) def. (56) Nadja Gilchrist, 4-6, 6-2, 6-2.
4. Jessica Alexander (UF) def. (93) Monika Dancevic, 6-4, 6-1.
5. Naoko Ueshima (UGA) def. Barbara Pinterova, 6-3, 7-6 (2).
6. Cameron Ellis (UGA) def. Brooke Allen, 6-0, 6-0.
Order of finish: Doubles – 3, 1 (clinch); Singles – 6, 4, 1, 3, 5 (clinch).
Records: Georgia 26-2, Florida 16-10.