The UF women's tennis team won 23 of 27 matches in a three-day span and cruised through the season-opening Gator Fall Classic, which lasted Friday to Sunday.
Senior Lolita Frangulyan and sophomore Anastasia Revzina led the team throughout the event, each winning all of their singles and doubles matches at the Ring Tennis Complex.
UF dominated in its only home stand of the fall, defeating South Florida, Florida International and North Florida in doubles and singles play. The teams alternated match-ups each day.
The Gators won two of three doubles matches Friday against USF, and then completed their first day by taking five of six singles matches from FIU and USF.
Frangulyan began her senior season on the right note, defeating USF's Ginifer Hartman, 6-0, 6-0. She lost only a total of seven games in three straight singles matches, which included another shut out of USF's Ashley Schumacher, 6-0, 6-0 on Sunday.
Senior Diana Srebrovic, UF's highest nationally ranked player at 12, defeated FIU's 92nd-ranked Egle Petrauskaite, the only ranked opponent the Gators faced, 6-3, 7-5.
UF continued its strong play on Saturday, taking eight of nine matches and sweeping all six singles matches against UNF.
Senior Whitney Benik and Revzina led the Gators in doubles play for the second day in a row, posting an 8-2 victory over FIU's Marijana Cutuk and Maria Jose Vallasciani. The pairing won 8-1 on Friday against a USF doubles team while playing together for the first time in their careers.
Benik also highlighted the singles matches, handling Vanessa Sanchez, 6-0, 6-1, and getting her first win of the year.
Sunday brought more of the same for the Gators, who won eight of nine matches, including a doubles sweep of UNF.
Sophomore Csilla Borsanyi and Srebrovic recorded their first doubles victory against Natalia Sanchez and Victoria Krook, 8-1.
Sophomore Megan Alexander dropped the only match of the day for the Gators, losing to USF's Natalia Guevara, 6-4, 6-4.
UF coach Roland Thornqvist said this was the first year all of UF's players have played every day at the classic.
"All six of our players who competed this weekend are returning from last year, and it showed," Thornqvist said. "While we're not playing at the top of our games right now, we are further ahead than where we were last year. We look like a sturdier group, more mature, and we're taking things in stride. If we continue to improve, we'll have a chance to be pretty good this year."
-STAFF REPORT
