Florida Women’s Tennis to Visit Miss. State, Bama

The Florida Gators women’s tennis team heads on the road for a two-game stretch following its two-match homestand. Florida (4-6) will face Mississippi State (10-5) at 3 p.m. on Friday before heading to Tuscaloosa to take on the Crimson Tide (9-4) on Sunday.

UF’s Homestand

Florida is 1-4 in conference play and is coming off a homestand that it split against two Top-10 Texas teams. An intense three-set win by Nikola Daubnerova on court four in Florida’s match against Texas showcased the freshman’s strength and determination and secured the Gators a 4-3 win over the No. 9 team in the nation. Additionally, a surprising and hard-fought doubles-point win was complemented by seniors Rachel Gailis and Alicia Dudeney triumph’s in singles. Despite UF’s success against Texas, the Gators struggled against a powerhouse team merely two days later in the their 4-0 loss to No. 3 Texas A&M.

The Ring has a nice ring to it tonight!#GoGators | Presented by @WellsFargo pic.twitter.com/FPiB6N1nOR

— Gators Women's Tennis (@GatorsWTN) March 8, 2025

Florida Opponents

Mississippi State is 0-5 in conference play and has faced a recent backslide. After starting the spring season 9-0, the Bulldogs fell to five straight conference opponents (Alabama, Vanderbilt, Missouri, Ole Miss and LSU). Despite coming off a recent 4-0 sweep of Eastern Kentucky, Mississippi State is still looking for its first win in SEC play on Friday.

No. 21 Alabama is 3-2 in conference play and off to a strong start in the SEC, defeating Mississippi State, Missouri and Ole Miss. However, the Crimson Tide began March by falling to Vanderbilt and LSU in back-to-back matches. Despite Florida’s record, the Gators will prove to be a big test for an Alabama team looking to find its identity in a cutthroat conference. Coming off a statement win — a 4-0 sweep of Ole Miss — Alabama is looking to carry its momentum into its Friday match with No. 11 Auburn before hosting the Gators on Sunday.

Rankings

Despite being swept by No. 3 Texas A&M, Florida’s upset of No. 9 Texas last Friday skyrocketed the Gators in the ITA rankings this week, boosting Florida from No. 61 to No. 37. Gailis and Dudeney remain at No. 6 in doubles, while Gailis is the only Florida player in the singles rankings, slated at No. 50.

Nationally No. 54, Mississippi does not have any ranked singles players or doubles pairs.

At No. 21 in the nation, Alabama has one player, senior Petra Sedlackova, in the ITA singles rankings at No. 79. However, the Crimson Tide do not have any ranked pairs in doubles competition.

Up Next

Following the competitions in Starkville, Mississippi, and Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Florida women’s tennis will return home to prepare for its matches on the following Friday and Sunday against Missouri and Vanderbilt, respectively.