Alfredo Perez sat on the bench and stared straight at the ground with frustration. This body language is not typical of a player leading his opponent by one set and heading into a second set tiebreak.
However, moments earlier a voice came over the loudspeaker at the University of Georgia’s Dan Magill Tennis Complex saying that Virginia had just clinched the match over Florida. The “agony of defeat” was setting in for Perez and his teammates.
The No. 15 Gators were eliminated from the NCAA Tournament by the No. 2 Cavaliers, the two-time defending champions.
UF needed to start the match strong and fast, but failed to do so, as it was shutout by UVA 4-0.
Virginia’s deep roster, filled with five ranked singles players, was too much for Florida in the end.
And that depth was evident right away in doubles play.
The nation’s No. 2-ranked pairing of Perez and Johannes Ingildsen was playing strong tennis against Virginia’s No. 17 pairing of Luca Corinteli and Carl Soderlund, keeping the match on serve.
Yet, UVA had strong pairings at number two and three doubles and was able to capture the singles point before Perez and Ingildsen even entertained a match point.
Losing the doubles point meant that the Gators would need four singles wins to claim victory. However, the momentum was already on the side of the Cavaliers and it never left.
Virginia backed up its doubles performance by winning five of the first six sets, No. 8 Perez being the lone first set victor for Florida.
No. 14 Thai-Son Kwiatkowski was able to earn the victory over Gators-captain No. 85 Elliott Orkin on court No. 2. The Cavaliers’ top-ranked player was the first of his team to pick up a win, defeating Orkin 6-3, 6-2.
Shortly after, Soderlund was able to pick up a victory over Florida junior Chase Perez-Blanco 6-1, 6-4, extending Virginia’s lead to 3-0.
Despite the deficit, the Gators refused to go away.
In the fourth spot, senior Maxx Lipman dropped his first set to No. 40 Collin Altamirano, but responded by taking the second set, evening the tally at 1-1.
And on court six McClain Kessler was closing in on forcing a second-set tiebreak.
But before Lipman and Kessler could capitalize on their opportunities, Virginia’s No. 109 J.C. Aragone broke through with the decisive victory over Florida’s No. 123 Ingildsen 6-4, 6-4. Aragone’s win sent the Cavaliers to the quarterfinals and the Gators heading home earlier than they wanted to.
The loss marks the second-straight year that Virginia has eliminated Florida from the NCAA tournament, but for two Gators, there is still some work left to do.
Perez and Ingildsen will be competing as a doubles pair when play begins for the NCAA Individual Championships on Wednesday, May 24. Perez will also be competing in singles play.
Contact Mark Stine at mstine@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @mstinejr.
UF's Alfredo Perez hits a backhand during Florida's 4-0 win against UNC Wilmington on Jan. 28, 2017, at the Ring Tennis Complex.
