Florida freshman Andrew Butz (Vero Beach, Fla.) has been named the Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Week for men’s tennis, the SEC announced Wednesday.
Butz’s first weekend of dual matches was memorable, as he had the clincher in both singles and doubles as the Gators topped then-No. 7 Baylor on Sunday. As a result of the victory, Florida moved up from ninth to seventh in the ITA polls.
With Baylor serving at 7-7 and the doubles point on the line, Butz and doubles partner Sekou Bangoura Jr. (Bradenton, Fla.) battled for a break, which was sealed by Butz’s looping forehand over both Baylor players at the net. Butz then gave UF the match, 9-7, and the doubles point with a well-placed drop shot at the net just beyond the reach of his opposition. The Gator freshman then faced Baylor junior Julian Bley in singles and pulled out a straight-sets victory, which put UF up 4-0 for the clinching win.
Butz also put up an undefeated Friday, helping the Gators blank Furman, 7-0, in his dual match debut and extending UF’s opening-day win streak to 23 years. Butz was the only Gator player this week to win both singles matches in straight sets without going to a tiebreaker at any point.
In 2010, Bangoura and Bob van Overbeek (Boca Raton, Fla.) combined to win SEC Freshman of the Week five times.
Florida continues its schedule on Friday, hosting UC Santa Barbara as part of the ITA Kick-Off Weekend. With a win, the Gators would then face either Troy or North Carolina State on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Linder Stadium at Ring Tennis Complex with a berth in the ITA National Team Indoor Championships at stake. Troy and North Carolina State square off for their opening-round match Friday at 1 p.m. on the Gators’ courts.
Results for Andrew Butz, SEC Freshman of the Week
Jan. 21 vs. Furman
Doubles – Bangoura/Butz def. Christ/Cook – 8-1
Singles – Butz def. Robbie Aru – 6-3, 6-2
Jan. 23 vs. Baylor
Doubles – Bangoura/Butz def. Ramirez/Rux – 9-7
Singles – Butz def. Bley – 6-4, 6-3
