The top-ranked University of Florida women’s tennis team earned a quick 4-0 victory against Auburn at Linder Stadium at Ring Tennis Complex on Sunday afternoon.
With Auburn’s travel schedule, play was halted once the dual match victory had been secured. Florida (15-1, 4-0 Southeastern Conference) needed 47 minutes to win two doubles matches and another 74 minutes to collect three singles victories and post its 98th consecutive regular-season home match.
“I thought we were pretty efficient,” UF head coach Roland Thornqvist said. “The highlight of the day was the play at (court) six with Brittany Borsanyi. She played what I thought was flawless tennis and it was good to see. She made good decisions with the ball and looked as sharp as she has in the two years she’s been at Florida.”
The Gator sophomore from Palm Beach Gardens made the most of her first dual match appearance since April 4, 2010, by completely overpowering Taylor Cohen, 6-0, 6-1, on court No. 6 and giving Florida a 2-0 lead in the team scoring. Borsanyi just missed the double-bagel, as Cohen managed a break in the fifth game of the second set, but Borsanyi quickly regrouped to earn another break and served out for the 54-minute victory.
“I was really happy with the way I played,” Borsanyi shared. “I didn’t make any unforced errors. It was an amazing feeling to be out there. That’s probably what made me play so well.”
Lauren Embree (Marco Island, Fla.) followed three minutes later with an impressive 6-0, 6-1 victory against Olivia Bennett at the No. 2 position. The Gator sophomore also fell just short of a double-bagel win, as she lost her serve in the second game of the second set, but it didn’t shake her focus as she cruised to her 13th consecutive singles win.
Alex Cercone (Seminole, Fla.) provided the final result of the afternoon, taking down Jacqueline Kasler, 6-1, 6-2 on court five, where the Gator sophomore took advantage of breaks in the sixth and eighth games in the second set to collect the straight-set win and help Florida win its 89th consecutive overall home match.
Florida had won the first set on the remaining three singles courts against Auburn (2-12, 0-4 SEC) and led on each in the second when play was abandoned.
Florida, which improved to 168-1 all-time at home versus SEC teams, earned doubles victories on courts No. 2 and 3, with play abandoned on court No. 1 once the doubles point had been decided.
Olivia Janowicz (Palm Bay, Fla.) and Sofie Oyen (Leopoldsburg, Belgium) played together for the first time, but looked comfortable from the get-go, jumping out to a 3-0 lead against Taylor Schreimann and Caroline Thornton. The Gator pair was able to maintain the one-break lead and tack on another in the eighth game for a 6-2 lead. Janowicz held while Oyen served out for the 8-3 win.
The Gators started a little slow on court No. 2, but Embree and Joanna Mather (Duluth, Ga.) found their step after a few games and turned a 3-0 deficit into a 7-3 lead after Embree held serve two games after Mather held at love. Auburn broke Florida’s run, but Mather served out for the 8-4 win and provided the Gators with the clinching doubles decision. The win for the pair of Embree and Mather was its 11th consecutive.
“I thought we did some good things,” Thornqvist said of the doubles play. “As far as poaching, our number one is starting to learn to not settle for one poach per point. We’ve talked about having the courage to make plays and not just play to hit the ball in the court. We started slow at (court) two, but once those guys get it going, they’re tough to beat. We handled ourselves well at three. Overall, I was very pleased with the day.”
Florida has a full week off from competition, before turning its attention to a split home-and-away weekend, when the team first travels to Oxford, Miss., to play Ole Miss on Friday, March 25, before hosting Mississippi State on Sunday, March 27.
Women’s College Tennis
Auburn at No. 1 Florida
Linder Stadium at Ring Tennis Complex
Gainesville, Fla.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Final Score: Florida 4, Auburn 0
Doubles
1. Alex Cercone/Allie Will, UF led Olivia Bennett/ Paulina Schippers, AU, 7-3 DNF
2. #75 Lauren Embree/Joanna Mather, UF d. Plamena Kurteva/ Jacqueline Kasler, AU, 8-4*
3. Olivia Janowicz/Sofie Oyen, UF d. Taylor Schreimann/ Caroline Thornton, AU, 8-3
Order of Finish: 3, 2*
Singles
1. #7 Allie Will, UF led Paulina Schippers, AU, 6-3, 2-0 DNF
2. #26 Lauren Embree, UF d. Olivia Bennett, AU, 6-0, 6-1
3. Sofie Oyen, UF led Caroline Thornton, AU, 6-3, 2-1 DNF
4. #21 Joanna Mather, UF led Plamena Kurteva, AU, 6-2, 4-0
5. #35 Alex Cercone, UF d. Jacqueline Kasler, AU, 6-1, 6-2*
6. Brittany Borsanyi, UF d. Taylor Cohen, AU, 6-0, 6-1
Order of Finish: 6, 2, 5*
