Skip to Content, Navigation, or Footer.
We inform. You decide.
Friday, March 29, 2024

It was 40-40 in the third set. Sam Riffice was tied 4-4 with his opponent, Adam Walton, and was serving to go ahead 5-4. Instead, he double-faulted.

Riffice’s reaction said it all in Florida’s loss to Tennessee on Saturday.

He was shocked and angry, and he never recovered from that mistake. The freshman fell in the third set 7-5, and his reaction mirrored the whole team’s.

The top-seeded Gators suffered a shocking 4-3 loss to the No. 4-seed Volunteers on Saturday in the SEC Tournament semifinals at the Ring Tennis Complex in Gainesville.

The Gators were ahead 3-2 and had the lead on Courts 2 and 4. On Court 4, sophomore Andy Andrade was ahead 5-3 in the third set but lost four straight games and fell 7-5.

Coach Bryan Shelton credited Tennessee for staying calm even in tense moments.

“They were super disciplined with their play and made very few unforced errors,” he said. “So, when the pressure ramped up, they just stayed steady.”

The defeat ended many streaks for UF. It stopped a 15-match winning streak, and it was its first loss since its 4-1 defeat on Feb. 17 to then-No. 10 Stanford at the ITA National Team Indoor Championships. This was the first time it lost at home since March 14, 2018, and it was the first loss outdoors this season. It was also the first loss to an SEC team in 2019. Florida had previously been 13-0 against conference teams and had beaten Tennessee 5-2 in Knoxville on March 17.

There were early warning signs for the Gators, starting in doubles. For the first time since their March 31 win over Texas A&M, they lost the doubles point.

On Court 1, Tennessee’s No. 10-ranked duo of Timo Stodder and Preston Touliatos beat sophomore Oliver Crawford and senior Alfredo Perez 6-1. The Volunteers clinched the point with a 6-3 win on Court 2 over junior Johannes Ingildsen and senior McClain Kessler.

Next came singles, and Florida had been in this situation before. When the Gators beat Tennessee, they lost doubles but won singles on five of six courts. Early on in Saturday’s match, it seemed like UF would respond in a similar way.

Perez tied it with a 6-2, 6-2 win on Court 5. Sophomore No. 94 Duarte Vale improved to 13-1 with a 6-1, 6-4 triumph on Court 6. No. 11 Crawford then put Florida one win away with from victory with a 6-4, 6-2 straight-set win over No. 28 Stodder on Court 1.

Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Alligator delivered to your inbox

The Volunteers clawed their way back. They made it 3-2 on Court 3 with a Scott Jones 6-4, 6-2 win over Ingildsen.

“I definitely had my chances in that final set, Riffice said after the loss. “I thought I did everything I could, and he just hit some better shots than me.”

Florida will now focus on the NCAA tournament. The first round will most likely begin in Gainesville on May 4.

“The best is yet to come,” Shelton said. “Let’s take a couple of days, regroup and double our effort.”

Follow Noah Ram on Twitter @noah_ram1 and contact him at nram@alligator.org.

Alfredo Perez got a 6-2, 6-2 win on Court 5 in Florida's loss to Tennessee. 

Support your local paper
Donate Today
The Independent Florida Alligator has been independent of the university since 1971, your donation today could help #SaveStudentNewsrooms. Please consider giving today.

Noah Ram

Noah is a third year journalism-sports and media student from Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. He has been with The Alligator since Spring 2019 and has covered men’s and women’s tennis, gymnastics and volleyball. When he isn’t on his beat, Noah is usually sadden over his beloved South Florida sports teams, such as the Heat and Dolphins.


Powered by SNworks Solutions by The State News
All Content © 2024 The Independent Florida Alligator and Campus Communications, Inc.