Florida Women’s Tennis Continues SEC Play With Alabama Match

No. 15 Florida women’s tennis returns to Gainesville for another SEC matchup, hosting Alabama on Thursday.

The Gators (11-4, 6-3 SEC) are coming off a 4-1 victory against South Carolina last Thursday.

“Every win is important in this conference,” Gators associate head coach Axel Damiens said.

The Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex has treated the Gators well this season. They hold a 6-1 home record. In their last home match, the Gators defeated No. 11 Tennessee 4-2 in dramatic fashion, with Lucie Pawlak coming back from down one set to win her match and the overall matchup for Florida.

“I was shaking. I was paralyzed, I couldn’t feel my legs or my arms anymore,” Pawlak said.

Leading the Gators this season in singles, Gabia Paskauskas (15-7) won her last matchup vs. South Carolina. On the doubles side, the pair Nikola Daubnerova-Xinyi Nong (13-9) will lead the doubles team against Alabama.

“You have to take care of business on your court, and that’s the best way you can help the team,” Daubnerova said.

Florida has dominated Alabama (12-5) in recent years, holding a 27-2 all-time record and 9-1 record in the last 10 matchups.

The Crimson Tide has been struggling in SEC play, holding a 4-5 record and is fresh off a 4-1 loss against No. 9 Oklahoma. Alabama will look to break its losing streak against the Gators. However, in the past few years, the team hasn’t found success.

Alabama’s strength lies in its singles lineup, with three players nationally ranked. None are in the doubles lineup. Therefore, the key for the Gators should come through the doubles side.

As the tennis season enters the final stretch, the Gators’ final SEC matchups will be crucial for their rankings, as three of their matchups are against SEC teams ranked ahead of them nationally.

The match is set for a 5 p.m. start in Gainesville.

Category: Gators Tennis, Tennis