Though rain delayed their match for more than two hours, the Gators’ momentum was not dampened.
The Gators took on the Michigan Wolverines in the Round of 16 Thursday night, and came out of the match with a 4-0 victory. This win sends the Gators to the NCAA Quaterfinals, just three away from becoming back-to-back national champions.
During the doubles portion of the match, Michigan stuck with Florida, and the two squads split the first two matches. However, the dominant team of Lauren Embree and Joanna Mather were able to come back from an early deficit and take their match 9-7, giving Florida the first point of the match. The doubles victory was Embree and Mather’s 23rd consecutive doubles victory, the third-longest streak in the program’s history.
“Doubles was very close,” said coach Roland Thornqvist. “I was very happy to see our doubles teams keep their heads and communicate very well.”
With their team up 1-0, the Gators did not take their foot off the pedal and were able to put Michigan away after three more matches.
Olivia Janowicz gave the Gators a quick 2-0 lead when she defeated Michelle Sulahian in two sets. Janowicz’s victory was soon followed by Embree’s, who beat Michigan’s Brooke Bolender in two sets.
Sofie Oyen provided the clinching victory for the Gators, defeating Sarah Lee in two sets as well.
“I thought the singles matches were outstanding,” Thornqvist said.
When Oyen ended the match with her victory, Gators were also leading in the second sets on two other courts, putting an exclamation point on a resounding victory for a team that has not allowed a single point in the NCAA tournament this year.
“We’re moving well, we’re playing smart, we can handle ups and downs and we can handle mistakes well,” Thornqvist said.
The Gators will face Miami Saturday at 4 p.m.
