Florida women’s tennis cruises to road victory over Arkansas

After just five months as a Gator, freshman Brooke Black continues to prove her talent on the court. 

For the fifth consecutive match this season, Black was the first to finish in singles. The freshman defeated Arkansas’ Alexan Panagiotidou 6-0, 6-3, earning her fifth-straight win.

Black’s performance was the catalyst for Florida’s 4-0 sweep against Arkansas on Thursday afternoon.

The Gators are coming off a dominant victory over Bethune-Cookman last week, where they captured every point in a 7-0 bout. 

Florida faced a tough opponent in its first conference match against Auburn, but that victory gave the Gators the confidence to dominate in its second SEC matchup.

In doubles, Florida answered the call, regaining the momentum it lacked in its first conference contest against Auburn.

The power duo of Valery Gynina and Black found their rhythm again. The pair defeated Arkansas’ Jimena Gomez Alonso and Brooke Schafer in a 6-2 decision.

No. 23 Nikola Daubnerova and Xinyi Nong battled the No. 25 pair of Caroli Gomez Alonso and Anet Koskel but fell 6-3.

However, Florida’s India Houghton and Lucie Pawlak regained control, edging Arkansas’ Arina Babenko and Panagiotidou 6-4 to secure the doubles point.

 Pawlak added another point for Florida, clinching a 6-3, 6-1 victory over J. Gomez Alonso.

Houghton followed in what became the final completed singles match, defeating Schafer 6-4, 6-2. The graduate student is putting together an impressive spring season after battling an injury just a few months ago.

With the score at 4-0, the remaining matches were left unfinished as the Gators secured the win. The victory marks Florida’s first SEC win of the season.

The Gators return to action Saturday, hosting No. 11 Oklahoma at the Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex. First serve is set for 1 p.m.

Contact Sofia Alamo at salamo@alligator.org. Follow her on X @alamosofiaa.

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