The second round has haunted Florida men’s tennis this season, as they fell in the second round of the Southeastern Conference Tournament and the NCAA Division I Men’s Tennis Tournament.
Despite sweeping Stetson in a 5-0 victory on Friday, momentum stalled as UCF senior Yassine Dlimi delivered what sounded like charged-up serves to eliminate junior Adhithya Ganesan and Florida from the tournament with a 7-6 (7-4) final game deciding tiebreaker set.
Though Ganesan pushed on early and attempted to avenge UF’s early-season – and last season’s second-round NCAA Tournament loss – to No. 15 UCF (22-6, 5-3 Big 12), No. 19 Florida (17-14, 6-8 SEC) fell flat in its final game of the 2025-26 season, 4-3, in Lake Nona, Florida.
But things started out well for the Gators as they came out swinging in doubles.
The senior-junior duo of Pablo Perez Ramos and Ganesan won 6-1 for a second consecutive match.
Deja vu followed as the No. 14 duo of Tanapatt Nirundorn and Henry Jefferson clinched the doubles point for a second consecutive time with a 6-4 win.
Unlike their past match, the duo at position three were spared a loss, as their match was abandoned in their favor 5-4 (15-15).
Continuing his dominance was Ramos, who took the first singles set 6-2 and controlled the remainder of the match en route to a 6-3 straight-set victory.
His teammates followed closely, with four of them also emerging victorious in their first sets.
Junior Jeremy Jin, with his powerful forehand slams and backhand chops, won his first set 6-3. He continued to overpower freshman Pedro Rodrigues, winning set two 6-1.
Ganesan, with his deliberate backhand swings, jumped up early 6-4. But the second set proved more challenging as Dlimi broke out in front with a 6-4 showing. This continued as the UCF senior called game in the final back-and-forth deciding set.
The last first-set victory was wrapped up by junior Kevin Edengren, who also won a 6-3 battle. But UCF sophomore Clement Lemire quickly answered with his own 6-2 middle set, forcing a decisive third-set clash. The Knight took an early lead and concluded with another 6-2 win for UCF’s third point of the match.
Unlike last match, Jefferson was bested by senior Paul Colin in a long 7-6 (8-6) duel. The Englishman eventually fell 6-3 in the second set as UCF earned its first point.
The same could be said for senior Lorenzo Claverie, who fell in his own first-set tiebreaker 7-6 (7-2) and then 6-4 in set two, granting the Knights their second point.
With Florida’s elimination, UCF will face the reigning champions, No. 4 Wake Forest (32-3, 12-1 ACC) in the NCAA Super Regional at 5 p.m. on Friday at the Wake Forest Tennis Center in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
Contact Ethan Feinberg at efeinberg@alligator.org. Follow him on X @thefeinline.
Ethan Feinberg is a senior sports journalism student and the Spring 2026 men’s tennis reporter. He has previously written stories and produced audio sessions for WRUF, covering high school football. Ethan enjoys watching and playing sports like football and basketball, working out, fishing, cooking, and having a good laugh with his friends and family. His favorite sports teams are the New England Patriots, Miami Heat, Florida Panthers, and the Miami Marlins. (Drake "Drake Maye" Maye is the GOAT.)
