Florida Women’s Tennis Stuns No. 9 Texas For First Conference Win

The Florida Gators women’s tennis team took to its home court with energy on a sunny Friday afternoon looking to bounce back from a rough 0-3 skid to start conference play.

The Gators (4-5, 1-3 SEC) matched up with an elite No. 9 Texas team (8-5, 2-2) and fought hard for every point. This energy was just what Florida needed in its push to overcome the Longhorns 4-3.

Doubles

UF junior Rachel Gailis-freshman Nikola Daubnerova couldn’t come back against freshman Ashton Bowers-junior Vivian Ovrootsky on court three after dropping a serve early. Unprepared for Texas’ early surge, the Gators found themselves trailing 4-1 before losing 6-3 to give the Longhorns an advantage in doubles.

Florida seniors Alicia Dudeney–Bente Spee fought hard in their court one win against freshmen Charlotte Kempenaers-Pocz–Salma Drugdova, leaving the doubles point to be decided on court two. The seniors broke the Longhorns in the eighth game en route to a 6-3 victory.

Freshmen Talia Neilson-Gatenby–Noémie Oliveras fired up the Gators by stunning Texas in doubles, roaring back from down 3-0 against freshmen Carmen Herea–Eszter Meri on court two. Despite a strong start by the Longhorns, Florida battled back to 5-5 before breaking Texas in the 11th game to win 7-5. The pair’s huge win secured Florida its first doubles point since Feb. 9 and handed Texas its first doubles point loss since Feb. 8.

Gators take the doubles point +1

A. Dudeney & Bente Spee 6️⃣-3️⃣
Talia Neilson-Gatenby & Noemie Oliveras 7️⃣-5️⃣#GoGators pic.twitter.com/UDXrd6TS58

— Gators Women's Tennis (@GatorsWTN) March 7, 2025

Trading Blows in Singles

Following the upset in doubles, a light chill set over the Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex as the sun began to set and Florida looked to stay hot heading into singles. However, the Longhorns struck first in singles to tie the match 1-1 when Drugdova took a straight-set victory against Oliveras on court six. The freshman didn’t seem to have an answer for Drugdova, as the Longhorn charged to a commanding 6-2, 6-0 win.

Neilson-Gatenby couldn’t crack the code to surpass Herea on court three, as the Romanian cruised to victory in straight sets, 6-1, 6-2. Herea’s win put Texas back in front, 2-1, in Friday’s intense SEC contest.

Gailis pushed herself to grab a huge win for Florida on court one against Bowers. After winning the first set 6-2, Gailis cruised to another 6-2 victory in set two, tying the match 2-2.

https://twitter.com/GatorsWTN/status/1898164432892838181

Dudeney was able to grab a win in her match against Meri in straight sets on court two, pulling UF one point from victory, 3-2. The senior took set one 6-2 before winning three straight games in the second set to take a 6-4 victory, her fourth of the spring season.

Spee put up a fight against Texas’ Kempenaers-Pocz on court five, but couldn’t down the freshman. The Kempenaers-Pocz bested Spee in a tiebreaker to win set one 7-6 and had the momentum from there. After her firs-set victory, Kempenaers-Pocz defeated the Gator 6-2 in set two, tying the match 3-3 and leaving the match point in the hands of the freshman and junior battling on court four.

Horns Down

Daubnerova faced Ovrootsky in an intense three-set battle on court four to decide Friday’s conference matchup. After defeating the junior 6-3 in set one, Daubnerova lost set two 6-4 as Ovrootsky forced an all-deciding third set. As expected, the final set turned out to be a battle. Trailing 2-3 early, the freshman won three straight games to take a 5-3 lead. From there, Daubnerova took a 6-3 victory as she was mobbed by her teammates and Florida emerged victorious 4-3.

Court 4 | N. Daubnerova takes set 3‼️

6️⃣-3️⃣
4️⃣-6️⃣
6️⃣-3️⃣#GoGators pic.twitter.com/nMZ44GEsNy

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

Takeaways

Coach Per Nilsson was impressed with his squad, saying he hopes the team’s first conference victory will give it a boost of confidence, especially because injuries have plagued the Gators.

Nilsson noted Gailis played well, showcasing determination in her return from a minor injury last weekend. He also explained that Daubnerova’s win was huge for the freshman in proving that she can handle the pressure of collegiate tennis.

“College tennis is the biggest equalizer ever,” he said. “She’s been on big stages before, but then once you come to college, no one cares, and the pressure is pretty big, so really important that she’s able to pull that out.”

Up Next

The Gators will stay at home to face No. 3 Texas A&M at noon Sunday in what looks to be a day of poor weather.

The Longhorns will stay on the road and look to bounce back from Friday’s loss when it heads to No. 12 Auburn at 1 p.m. Sunday.