Gators
Gators seniors Alicia Dudeney and Bente Spee high five in doubles against LSU during the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Kickoff Weekend match at the Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex in Gainesville, Fla., Sunday, Jan. 26, 2025. [Diego Perdomo/WRUF]

Florida Women’s Tennis Falls At No. 6 Tennessee

Following a tough 4-0 loss at No. 10 Oklahoma on Sunday, Florida (8-10, 4-8 SEC) headed to Knoxville, Tenn., to take on the rival Volunteers, hungry to earn a win against a top-10 opponent.

However, No. 6 Tennessee (15-4, 9-3) has been a dominant force in the SEC this spring. Despite coming off a recent 4-1 loss to No. 2 Texas A&M, the Vols had been on a previous tear of five straight conference wins and continued their success against Florida with a dominant 5-2 win Friday.

Doubles

Freshmen Reagan ParkerNoémie Oliveras were no match for Tennessee freshmen Conley RaidtSaray Yli-Piipari on court three. Already ahead 3-1, the Tennessee pair had no trouble winning points off the Gators’ serves and rushing to a 6-1 victory. The freshmen’s win gave the Volunteers an early advantage in doubles with court two closely following.

Florida junior Rachel Gailis-freshmen Talia Neilson-Gatenby couldn’t quite keep up with No. 38 juniors Catherine AuilaLeyla Britez Risso on court two as the Gators’ struggles continued. Tennessee’s 6-3 win secured them the doubles point to give the Volunteers a 1-0 lead entering singles play.

UF seniors Alicia DudeneyBente Spee, the No. 45 ranked doubles pair, trailed No. 50 senior Elza Tomase-sophomore Maeve Thornton 5-3 when the match was abandoned.

Clinching Singles

The Volunteers kept their momentum churning in singles, as they won four of the six first sets. Nearly immediately, Neilson-Gatenby was in over her head on court three against No. 69 Britez Risso. The freshman fell 6-2 in set one and didn’t fare any better in the second set when the ranked junior rushed to a straight set victory. Britez Risso’s 6-2, 6-1 win gave Tennessee an early 2-0 lead.

Oliveras struggled in her court five match against Yli-Piipari. Oliveras consistently played from behind and couldn’t catch up in a straight set loss. Her 6-4, 6-3 defeat earned the Volunteers their third unanswered point of the match, as Florida showed no sign of resistance.

No. 21 Gailis played well, but couldn’t get past No. 7 Tomase on court one. The top-ranked Volunteer defeated Gailis 6-3 in both sets one and two, extending her singles record to 22-10 and clinching the win for Tennessee, 4-0.

Continuing Play

Play continued and No. 75 Dudeney impressed in her court two upset of No. 34 Auila. Despite facing an opponent that had a 22-8 record, Dudeney bested her in straight sets. Her 6-3, 6-4 win showcased her dominance and secured the Gators a point, 4-1.

Parker made a valient effort to comeback against Tennessee freshman Elim Yan in set one on court six, but lost in a tiebreaker 7-4. Parker was out of it from there as Yan won six of the next eight games to pull out a straight set victory. The Gator’s 7-6(4), 6-3 loss pushed Tennessee ahead 5-1.

Spee defeated Thorton 7-5 in set one, but the Volunteer came rushing back to easily win set two 6-2. From there, an all-deciding super tiebreaker ensued and turned out to be a battle. Despite trailing 4-2, Spee remarkably scored eight straight points, racing to a 10-4 victory and adding Florida’s second point in its 5-2 loss.

Up Next

Florida plays at Kentucky at 1 p.m. Sunday.

About Curan Ahern

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