It had the makings of last weekend’s blowout loss at home against No. 5 Loyola-Maryland.
To kick off SEC play this season, Florida traveled to Tuscaloosa, Alabama to take on the Crimson Tide. This was the first time this season the Gators were playing as an unranked team after they fell out of the ITA rankings despite their dominant victory last week against Georgia State last weekend.
The Gators lost two straight doubles points coming into Friday’s match and were on the brink of losing a third.
With championship season approaching for the indoor track season, an SEC championship is the expectation this weekend for the Florida men’s team in College Station, Texas.
It was a week of highs and lows for the Gators.
It took 42 seconds for freshman attacker Kaala Puglisi to open today’s scoring.
The Gators dropped to eighth in the most recent Inside Lacrosse Maverik Women’s Division I Media Poll after their 17-6 drubbing at the hands of Loyola-Maryland Saturday at home.
Stripped of his socks and shoes, Florida’s men’s swimming coach Anthony Nesty stood on the pool deck in the James E. Martin Aquatics Center in Auburn, Alabama.
It was a slow and methodical breakdown, Saturday against Loyola Maryland.
The weather wasn’t perfect but the play certainly was on Saturday as Florida secured a commanding win over Georgia State at the Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex. Although originally scheduled for 10 a.m., the game was pushed back to noon due to concerns about the brisk weather in the morning.
When all else failed, Florida turned to junior midfielder Shannon Kavanagh, its hero of games past. But even Superman lost a battle, and as No. 10 Loyola limited Kavanagh’s production, her team also suffered through kryptonite-induced weakness.
Neither Buffaloes nor Terrapins have been able to stand in the way of the No. 3 Gators’ path this season.
A first-place finish, a No. 2 spot in SportsCenter’s Top-10, a three-body-length lead and a 4:06.32 swim.
Plenty of excuses could’ve been made for No. 10 Florida at the Sugar Bowl Intercollegiate, considering heavy rain was a problem all weekend and the team was coming off its worst performance of the season last week.
Following back-to-back wins against top-25 opponents, including this weekend’s upset win over No. 2 Maryland, the Gators rose nine spots to third in the Inside Lacrosse Poll. They also came in at No. 4 in the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association poll.
As the Florida Gators’ men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams get ready to compete in the SEC Championships at Auburn, Alabama, Tuesday, the coaches of both squads believe their teams’ success could be found in surprising places.
After losing their last two matches on the road, Florida bounced back with a strong showing in their home opener versus North Florida on Friday night.
The Gators were in a similar position against Wake Forest like they were Saturday night versus North Carolina after collapsing in doubles for the second-straight match.
For the second week in a row, junior midfielder Shannon Kavanagh proved to be the deciding factor for a Florida win.
Solutions by The State News
