Florida men’s tennis blanks Bethune-Cookman

The Florida Gator men’s tennis team (12-9) shut out the Bethune-Cookman Wildcats (12-13) 7-0 today to give the Gators a much needed win.

Florida had no problem defeating the Wildcats in doubles, winning all three of the doubles points. UF’s win started with a shutout on court two, where junior Mike Alford and freshman Luke Johnson defeated the Wildcat team of senior Kip Jackson and junior Leonardo Lima 8-0.

Next up for the Gators was the duo of junior Florent Diep and freshman Gordon Watson on court three. The pair defeated BCU junior Juan Varon and sophomore Moritz Pronath 8-2, giving the Gators the 1-0 edge.

The Gators finished the sweep on court one, where senior Bob van Overbeek and junior Stephan Piro took out BCU junior Santiago Lobelo and sophomore Diego Garavito 8-3.

The Gators carried their dominance in doubles into singles play, beginning on court five.  Florida’s Gordon Watson defeated BCU’s Moritz Pronath 6-2, 6-2 to give the Gators a 2-0 lead. Watson was solid throughout the match, and he forced Pronath to make mistakes.

Bob van Overbeek was next up on court three; he defeated BCU’s Leonardo Lima 6-0, 6-0 to give the Gators a 3-0 lead. Overbeek was able to pick apart Lima’s unique serve motion to win the match.

The Gators clinched the match on court six, where Luke Johnson took out Wildcat sophomore Gilbert Rotich 6-3, 6-1, giving the Gators a 4-0 lead and securing the win.

Florent Diep also had an easy time for the Gators, dispatching BCU’s Santiago Lobelo 6-1, 6-2 to give the Gators a 5-0 lead. Diep looked strong in Sunday’s match against Mississippi State, and he continued his stellar play on Wednesday.

Giving the Gators a 6-0 lead was Mike Alford on court four; he defeated BCU’s Diego Garavito 6-3, 6-1.

Completing the sweep for the Gators was Stephane Piro, who defeated Juan Varon 6-2, 6-2 to give the Gators the 7-0 sweep.

The Gators will play Kentucky on Friday at 5 p.m. at Linder Stadium at Ring Tennis Complex.