It might be one of the greatest home-court advantages of all time in any sport.
Whenever the UF women's tennis team is playing a Southeastern Conference opponent at home, there's about a 99.3 percent chance the Gators will come out on top.
UF (6-1) has lost just once at home in 140 dual matches against conference foes.
The lone loss came in 2002 against Georgia, 4-3.
UF coach Roland Thornqvist seems to think the hot weather has played to his teams' advantage over the years, as other SEC teams can't prepare for the conditions. But that isn't the only reason for the Gators' dominance.
"I think we've had good teams as well," Thornqvist said. "We've had teams that have been competitive every year, and it's always a little bit easier to play at home."
The No. 7 Gators will get two chances this weekend to continue their SEC home streak when No. 14 Vanderbilt visits Friday at 5 p.m. followed by No. 22 Kentucky on Sunday at 1 p.m.
The Commodores (7-0) fell to UF twice last season, once in Nashville (4-3) and again in the conference tournament (4-1), so Thornqvist knows his team's first conference opponent is looking for revenge.
"They've got … kids who love to play the Gators," Thornqvist said of Vanderbilt. "They tend to play their best tennis against us."
The Wildcats (9-2) also played UF close in Lexington last season, but it wasn't enough as they fell 4-3.
Not only will UF look to protect its home court, but it will also try to put itself in an early position to add another SEC regular-season title.
The Gators shared last year's crown with Georgia and have won 22 SEC titles in 28 years, the most conference titles won by any other SEC women's program in any sport.
Thornqvist said that even though these upcoming matches might mean more than the non-conference matches, his team hasn't focused on winning the conference this early in the season.
"What we like to do is talk about performance and how we can get better for each match and for each week," he said. "We don't really spend a whole lot of time talking about championships or talking about winning SEC. That sort of comes with playing well.
"If we get too worried about who we're playing and when it is, then I think that's going to affect our performance negatively," he added. "I think it's much more important for us to control what we can control. … If you can do that, then you're going to be where you want to be at the end."
The conference has nine teams currently ranked in the top 35 of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association rankings, and UF will play four of the other eight in Gainesville.
"Whoever wins this league is going to be good enough to compete on a national level," Thornqvist said. "That's the way it's supposed to be in this league."
The No. 11 UF men's tennis team will also begin its SEC season against the same opponents as the women's team, but it will be on the road instead.
The Gators (5-3) will play at No. 29 Vanderbilt (7-1) on Friday before traveling to Lexington to take on No. 54 Kentucky (5-5) on Sunday.
