The season began on Saturday with the Intercollegiate Tennis Association’s (ITA) All-American Championship pre-qualifying rounds hosted by the University of Tulsa.
Daubnerova and Pawlak didn't originally plan to compete together. But with Monastir hosting one of the few clay tournaments on the summer schedule, the Gators unexpectedly crossed paths more than 5,000 miles from Gainesville.
Florida always came to mind for Nicholson when thinking of where she wanted to go. The former Georgia Tech player faced the Gators twice in her last season as a Yellow Jacket. Ranked the No. 16 player in the country, Nicholson took a surprising three-set loss to Xinyi Nong in the round of 32 at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Southeast Regionals last October.
After falling in the Round of 16 in back-to-back ATP tournaments, former Florida standout Ben Shelton reclaimed his glory in the Stuttgart Open in Germany on Sunday.
Looking to end a nearly three-month-long championship drought, former Gator Anna Danilina stepped onto centre court to battle for the Roland Garros women’s doubles title in Paris on Sunday. But defeating the No. 1-seed tandem of Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend proved challenging.
Clinching the doubles point in five consecutive matches to kick off the season, the Gators had a newfound strength pushing them forward. However, that strong point suddenly shrank when conference play began, and the Gators shouldered the responsibility of rebuilding confidence in the home stretch of the season.
After graduating from Stanford with one year of eligibility remaining, Houghton chose to spend her final collegiate season at Florida. The move was completely different from the collegiate sports experience she had on the West Coast.
Reaching the quarterfinals or later in eight tournaments this season, former Florida women’s tennis player Anna Danilina has consistently put herself in contention for her 13th doubles title. But since winning the Qatar Open on Feb. 14 with partner Aleksandra Krunic, Danilina hasn't been able to clinch another title.
Fueled by close, hard-fought victories, Florida showed just how far it could go when riding serious momentum, finishing the season with a 17-8 record that nearly doubled last year’s win total.
UF remained a consistent top-25 program throughout the season, posted a winning record and amassed numerous top-100 players. Concluding 2026 with a 17-14 overall record and 6-8 in the Southeastern Conference, Florida’s season was defined by competitive play, SEC struggles and dominant victories.
No. 17 Florida fell 4-2 to the No. 12 Michigan Wolverines on Sunday in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
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.
UF (17-7) routed the Toledo Rockets (13-9), 4-0, on Saturday to advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Entering its 35th NCAA Tournament appearance, No. 19 Florida (17-13, 6-8 SEC) dominated Stetson University (14-7, 1-2 ASUN) 5-0 in the first round as the Gators swept all courts in Orlando.
After taking the first set and dropping the second, Lucie Pawlak stands at 4-4 in the third. With her teammates cheering from the sidelines and the crowd intensely watching on Saturday, Feb. 28, the freshman Florida tennis player carries the weight of the team’s result on her shoulders.
Solutions by The State News
