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Post by Deleted on May 14, 2015 11:09:31 GMT -5
By SCOTT CARTER
GatorZone.com Senior Writer
GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- A year ago Gators freshman Brooke Austin would have felt differently about the experience.
It just felt good Saturday.
Facing Georgia Tech’s Johnnise Renaud at No. 1 singles with a berth in the Sweet 16 on the line, Austin dropped the first set to Renaud, 4-6. She won the second set, 6-1, and led in the third, 1-0.
As Austin attempted to climb back from an early deficit and help Florida advance, teammate Josie Kuhlman capped a 4-0 Florida victory by closing out her match against Rasheeda McAdoo.
Austin quickly joined the Gators’ celebration, unbothered by the fact her opportunity to put away Renaud was silenced before she could finish the job.
“It’s definitely been a transition being part of a team,’’ Austin said. “You are not just playing for yourself anymore. It’s cool watching it all come together when you are out there.”
Prior to arriving at Florida in the fall, Austin was used to flying solo as one of the nation’s top junior players.
On the rare occasion she played on a team, it was usually in a blink.
“I would be around these girls on a team in juniors for like four or five days,’’ she said. “We would all be from different states and I’d never see them again. Here, I basically live with all of them. It’s way different.”
And it’s way OK. Austin has fit in as comfortably as a soft couch in the living room.
She became the first UF freshman to earn SEC Player of the Year honors -- she also was SEC Freshman of the Year -- and only the second first-year player in conference history to take the top individual award.
Austin is eager for a new experience on Friday when the No. 5-ranked Gators face Oklahoma State in the Sweet 16 at Baylor University in Waco, Texas.
“The bigger the stage, the better she is. We’ve seen that already,’’ Gators head coach Roland Thornqvist said. “This is the time when she’s going to give us the best shot to win. You can’t teach that.”
Florida is after its sixth consecutive top-3 finish and if the Gators play up to their ability, a third national title during that span isn’t out of the equation.
Austin, who is 31-5 overall and ranked third in the country, is a huge reason why Thornqvist is optimistic about his team’s chances.
She is a different player than the one Thornqvist traveled to New York with in September to watch Austin play in the U.S. Open junior girls singles competition.
“She is fitter than she has been all year and I think her serve is better than it’s been since she has come here,’’ Thornqvist said. “Those are two really, really important things for her.”
Austin is a power player on a Florida team known for its agility and ability to outrun opponents.
Georgia Tech coach Rodney Harmon watched his team run out of gas Saturday on a sun-baked 90-degree day at Linder Stadium.
“Their girls are in great shape,’’ Harmon said. “They ran the entire match. I think going into Waco they are going to be a factor.”
Austin didn’t exactly show up that way. Her game was in shape, but her body and mind needed some work.
Thornqvist has seen similar situations many times in his career when a highly-touted recruit arrives at college and quickly learns everyone on the team can do what she can do. How they accept the challenge of transitioning from high school to college is what he studies closely.
Austin passed.
“She has exceeded my expectations,’’ he said. “I mean, playing 1 in the SEC and on the national stage like … it’s brutal. And she came to play every weekend.
“Our goal was to make her a little fitter, a little quicker. We’re not looking for free points on the serve yet, we’re just looking for the serve not to hurt us. I would say in the last couple of months, we have seen fitness, agility, and the serve start to really take off.
Playing at No. 1 singles, Austin avenged both her regular-season conference losses at the SEC Tournament by defeating Mississippi’s Julia Jones and Vanderbilt’s Sydney Campbell in back-to-back matches.
Thornqvist has mentored many future pros in his time at UF, including Lauren Embree, who led Florida to back-to-back national championships in 2011 and ‘12.
Austin has the same kind of ability but a different type of approach.
“She has always been an unbelievable ball striker,’’ Thornqvist said. “When she gets to the ball and gets it right, it’s Lindsay Davenport, it’s on a rope. But she wasn’t quick enough, and she wasn’t fit enough, and her serve could go in and out, which under pressure in big moments in the past, has bit her in the butt.”
Thornqvist said Austin is at her best when the stakes are highest. Her game turns up a notch. She won’t face any higher stakes at Florida than in the NCAA Tournament.
Austin hasn’t been around long, but she understands the mission.
She has the same one as her teammates.
“We’ve been working for this the whole season. It’s obviously a big deal for all of us,’’ she said. “We all want to win a national championship.”
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Post by Deleted on May 15, 2015 22:36:00 GMT -5
#5 UF advanced to the Elite Eight with a 4-0 win over #12 Oklahoma State:
#5 FLORIDA (24-3) def. #12 OKLAHOMA STATE (23-6), 4-0 - Brookshire Family Pavilion (SMU/DALLAS)
Head Coaches: Roland Thornqvist (FLORIDA) and Chris Young (OKLAHOMA STATE)
Doubles (Order of finish: 3, 2)
1. #6 Brooke Austin/Kourtney Keegan (FLORIDA) vs. #12 Viktoriya Lushkova/Kelsey Laurente (OKLAHOMA STATE) 6-7, UF
2. Josie Kuhlman/Belinda Woolcock (FLORIDA) def. Katarina Adamovic/Vladica Babic (OKLAHOMA STATE) 8-6
3. Spencer Liang/Peggy Porter (FLORIDA) def. Carla Tur Mari/Maria Alvarez (OKLAHOMA STATE) 8-7 (4)
Singles (Order of finish: 3, 4, 2)
1. #3 Brooke Austin (FLORIDA) vs. #17 Viktoriya Lushkova (OKLAHOMA STATE) 6-4, 3-6, 1-3, UF
2. #13 Josie Kuhlman (FLORIDA) def. Katarina Adamovic (OKLAHOMA STATE) 6-3, 7-5
3. #28 Brianna Morgan (FLORIDA) def. Kelsey Laurente (OKLAHOMA STATE) 6-1, 6-3
4. #56 Kourtney Keegan (FLORIDA) def. #99 Vladica Babic (OKLAHOMA STATE) 6-2, 6-1
5. #58 Belinda Woolcock (FLORIDA) vs. Karyn Guttormsen (OKLAHOMA STATE) 4-6, 6-1, 1-4, UF
6. Peggy Porter (FLORIDA) vs. Carla Tur Mari (OKLAHOMA STATE) 7-6 (1), 3-5, UF
Advancing to the Elite Eight from the SEC: Florida; Georgia; Vanderbilt.
LOOKING AHEAD:
Florida will take on No. 4 Vanderbilt (4) in the NCAA Quarterfinals. The Gators are 0-2 versus Vanderbilt this season, but they lead the all-time series with the Commodores, 47-4. UF is 4-0 versus VU in NCAA matches.
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Post by Deleted on May 16, 2015 15:04:17 GMT -5
Elite Eight:
1 USC vs. 8 Baylor
14 Stanford vs. 6 Georgia
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5 Florida vs. 4 Vanderbilt
7 UCLA vs. 2 North Carolina
PAC - 3
SEC - 3
ACC - 1
Big 12 - 1
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Post by Deleted on May 17, 2015 20:51:00 GMT -5
(6) Georgia 4 (14) Stanford 1 - Stanford eliminated
(7) UCLA 4 (2) North Carolina 1 - North Carolina eliminated
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(1) USC 4 (8) Baylor 1 - Baylor eliminated
(4) Vanderbilt 4 (5) Florida 3 - Florida eliminated
Final Four on Monday and Final on Tuesday - Final Four consists of 2 PAC and 2 SEC.
UF fought to the last set, but lost it 6-4 and the match to Vandy 4-3. This is a young Gator team that will only be better next season. They did win the SEC championship and advanced to the Elite Eight - a good season.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 25, 2015 12:11:05 GMT -5
Wednesday June 24, 2015
Florida Women Finish Second in 2014-15 Capital One Cup
McLEAN, Va. – Two NCAA titles among a total of nine top-10 finishes in the 2014-15 season gives Florida a runner-up in the women’s Capital One Cup. In its fifth year, the Capital One Cup honors NCAA Division I athletics programs for their cumulative on-field performance across multiple men’s and women’s sports.
This past year, Gymnastics and softball repeated as NCAA champions in 2015. The gymnastics title was the third consecutive for the Gators, as its 0.05 winning margin equaled the slenderest in the meet’s 34-year history. Softball took its second straight Women’s College World Series title. The Gators are the first in the 11-year history of the WCWS Championship Series format to claim the title by winning Games 1 and 3.
The complete list of Florida women's 2014-15 top-10 teams includes:
•Gymnastics (No. 1)
•Softball (No. 1)
•Women’s Indoor Track & Field (No. 4)
•Soccer (No. T-5)
•Women’s Tennis (No. T-5)
•Volleyball (No. T-5)
•Women’s Outdoor Track & Field (No. 8)
•Women’s Swimming & Diving (No. 9)
•Lacrosse (No. T-9)
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Post by Deleted on Jun 25, 2015 19:19:07 GMT -5
Wednesday June 17, 2015
Brooke Austin Named to 2015 USTA Collegiate National Team
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Adding another line to an already impressive resume, freshman Brooke Austin has been named to the 2015 United States Tennis Association Collegiate National Team, a high-level training program designed to help America’s top collegiate competitors adapt to professional tennis in a team-oriented setting.
Austin, the only freshman on the national squad, joins 2015 NCAA singles champion Jamie Loeb of UNC, UCLA’s Jennifer Brady and Julia Elbaba of Virginia.
This year’s team was open to rising freshmen through rising seniors who met certain criteria outlined by the USTA. Austin qualified for the national team after being named the ITA National Rookie of the Year.
The Indianapolis, Ind., native has excelled in her rookie season of collegiate tennis, garnering SEC Player of the Year, SEC Freshman of the Year and ITA All-America (singles and doubles) honors. A Honda Sport Award nominee for tennis, Austin anchored Florida at No. 1 singles with a team-best 19-3 dual mark and a 10-2 record in Southeastern Conference matches. She and doubles partner Kourtney Keegan led the Gators this season No. 1 doubles, compiling a 25-4 overall record as a tandem in their first year playing together and making a run to the NCAA doubles semifinals.
Austin closed the season ranked No. 4 in singles and a career-high No. 3 in doubles with Keegan in the final Oracle/ITA rankings.
Gators Named to the USTA Collegiate National Team
Brooke Austin (2015)
Dawn Buth (1996, ’97)
Jill Craybas (1996, did not participate)
Lauren Embree (2010, ’11, ’12, ’13)
Whitney Laiho (1999, 2000, ’01)
Jessica Lehnhoff (2001, ’02)
Jennifer Magley (2004)
Stephanie Nickitas (1996, ’98)
M.C. White (1997)
Allie Will (2010, ’11, ’12)
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Post by Deleted on Jun 25, 2015 19:24:20 GMT -5
Women's National Team Rankings
Administered by the ITA
NCAA Division I Tennis
May 26, 2015
Rank Avg School Previous Week
1 83.20 Vanderbilt University 4
2 81.88 University of Southern California 1
3 78.35 UCLA 6
4 76.88 North Carolina 2
5 74.40 University of Georgia 7
6 72.64 University of Florida 5
7 71.98 California 3
8 66.62 Baylor University 9
9 65.50 University of Virginia 8
10 63.37 Texas A&M University 10
11 60.26 Stanford 14
12 55.83 Oklahoma State University 12
13 54.58 University of Michigan 11
14 52.61 University of Alabama 13
15 50.26 University of Miami (Florida) 15
16 47.36 Texas Tech University 16
17 42.15 TCU 17
18 41.64 Clemson University 21
19 38.28 Duke University 20
20 37.02 Georgia Tech 24
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Post by Deleted on Feb 4, 2016 23:11:45 GMT -5
2016 UF is off to a 2-0 start and is ranked #3 in the ITA rankings. The Gators beat #35 FSU in Tallahassee earlier today. Next up #4 USC in Gainesville on Sunday, 2/7:
No. 3 Gators Top Seminoles 6-1
By Grace Duggan | Thursday, February 4, 2016
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - The No. 3 University of Florida women's tennis team defeated in-state rival, Florida State, 6-1 on Thursday afternoon in Tallahassee.
The Gators once again grabbed the doubles point on Thursday led by two comeback efforts from the No. 1 and No. 3 positions. No. 5-ranked Brooke Austin and Kourtney Keegan found themselves down 2-0 in their match against Borthwick and Castaneda. The tandem got on the board and won three straight games. FSU would take the match to a 3-3 tie, only to see the Gators win the next three games and the match.
An even larger deficit was overcome by the No. 50-ranked duo of Anna Danilina and Brianna Morgan. The pair was down 4-0 in their match, but made a furious comeback effort to take the match and the doubles point, 6-4.
Singles action saw five singles victories for Florida. In her second singles dual match of the season, sophomore Danilina made quick work of Rush, 6-2, 6-3. No. 3-ranked Josie Kuhlman defeated Castaneda, 6-3, 6-2 and senior Morgan would grab her first dual match singles win of the season and clinch the match for the Gators with a 6-3, 6-1 victory.
In the conclusion of singles play, a tie-breaker was needed in the first set on the first line between Austin and Borthwick, 7-6, but took the second set, 6-1. Junior Keegan was another comeback kid on Thursday. After dropping her first set 6-2, the Gator took the second, 6-4 and won the third set tie breaker, 1-0 (10-4). Junior Spencer Liang fell in the final match of the night. Having dropped the first set 6-4, the Potomac, Md. native brought the match to a tie with a 6-2 second set victory.
In the third, Liang would fall to Rahmanparast with a 13-11 tie break loss.
Florida returns home this weekend for a big Top-5 matchup between the Gators and the No. 4 USC Trojans. First serve is slated for 11 a.m. on Sunday morning.
Coach Thornqvist's Thoughts
On the match victory over Florida State…
"I thought we started off a little bit on the nervous side in doubles and that can actually be catastrophic with the new format and much shorter doubles play. In the middle of the doubles, we started to hit our stride. We played some really clean games to earn the doubles point.
We had some really good battles in singles and I was curious to see how a couple of our players, who lost their matches here last year, would want to handle themselves today. I was happy to see two of them were some of the first ones off the court. Overall, I was very pleased and this was exactly what we wanted before Southern California and one more match under our belt. I thought we played better as the match went on today. I was very pleased against a feisty Florida State team."
Final Results
#3 Florida 6, #35 Florida State 1
Doubles-1, 3
#5 Brooke Austin/Kourtney Keegan (UF) def. Daneika Borthwick/Gabriella Castaneda (FSU) 6-3
#15 Josie Kuhlman/Belinda Woolcock (UF) vs. Julia Mikulsku/Yukako Noi (FSU) 5-4, susp.
#50 Anna Danilina/Brianna Morgan (UF) def. Ariana Rahmanparast /Lana Rush (FSU) 6-4*
Singles-5, 2, 4*, 1, 3, 6
#11 Brooke Austin (UF) def. Daneika Borthwick (FSU) 7-6, 6-1
#56 Josie Kuhlman (UF) def. Gabriella Castaneda (FSU) 6-3, 6-2
#25 Kourtney Keegan (UF) def. Yukako Noi (FSU) 2-6, 6-4, 1-0 (10-4)
#51 Brianna Morgan (UF) def. Julia Mikulski (FSU) 6-3, 6-1
#110 Anna Danilina (UF) def. Lana Rush (FSU) 6-2, 6-3
Ariana Rahmanparast (FSU) def. #73 Spencer Liang (UF) 4-6, 6-2, 1-0 (13-11) |
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Post by Deleted on Feb 4, 2016 23:46:23 GMT -5
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Now THIS here...is a member
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Post by lz2112 on Feb 5, 2016 1:15:15 GMT -5
SEC! SEC! SEC!  |
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Gator Bait!
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Post by Deleted on Feb 5, 2016 9:39:49 GMT -5
SEC! SEC! SEC! Really, 8 of the top 25 are in the SEC. I remember well when women's tennis was dominated by the PAC like they used to do in softball. Now, the SEC dominates women's tennis and softball.
The women's tennis team is good enough to win it all this year. However, they face stiff competition in the SEC and around the nation. When they break through, the program could get on a run like the softball and gymnastics teams.
The men are around #22, about where they were last season. If they break into the top 10, I'll open a thread on the men too. They don't appear to be up to the same standards as the ladies.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 8, 2016 9:52:31 GMT -5
#3 UF Blank #4 USC 7-0:
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - The No. 3 University of Florida women's tennis team defeated the No. 4 USC Trojans in dominating fashion on Sunday afternoon at the Ring Tennis Complex. The Gators swept the Trojans, 7-0 to move to 3-0 on the season.
The Gators once again took the early 1-0 lead over their opponent, grabbing the doubles point in two closely contested matches. At the No. 1 position, the marquee matchup of the day was No. 5-ranked Brooke Austin and Kourtney Keegan defeating the No. 4-ranked USC duo of Giuliana Olmos and Gabby Smith, 6-4. The No. 15-ranked tandem of Josie Kuhlman and Belinda Woolcock clinched the doubles point for the Gators with a 6-4 victory over Zoe Katz and Jessica Failla.
The Orange and Blue swept the singles play against some tough USC opponents. No. 110-ranked Anna Danilina once again made quick work of her opponent with a 6-2, 6-0 match win over No. 48 Rianna Valdes. Sophomore No. 56-ranked Kuhlman was the next off of the court with a 6-4, 6-3 defeat of No. 49 Madison Westby. Fellow-sophomore No. 11-ranked Austin got her first match-clinching win over No. 42 Giuliana Olmos, 7-6(3), 6-3.
UF would sweep the final three matches. No. 25 Keegan defeated No. 76 Jessica Failla, 6-2, 6-4. Junior Woolcock took her singles match over Gabby Smith, 6-4, 6-3. The most competitive match of the day and final one to finish was the comeback victory from senior Brianna Morgan. The Beverly Hills, Calif. native at the No. 5 position fell in the first set, 6-3. The senior then battled back to take the next two sets, 6-3, 7-5.
Up next, the Gators continue their home stand against Top-20 opponents with No. 15 Baylor on Saturday and No. 20 Clemson on Sunday.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 14, 2016 19:21:23 GMT -5
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - The third-ranked University of Florida women's tennis team improved to 4-0 in the 2016 season with a 4-0 match sweep of the No. 29 Baylor Bears on Saturday at the Ring Tennis Complex.
UF grabbed the doubles point quickly on Saturday with sweeps on courts one and three in under a half hour. No. 22-ranked Anna Danilina and Brianna Morgan were the first off the doubles court with a 6-0 victory over Kiah Generette and Gabriela Ferriera. The No. 16-ranked duo of Brooke Austin and Kourtney Keegan defeated Blair Shankle and Theresa Van Zyl, 6-0 on court one to clinch the doubles point.
In singles action, the Orange and Blue only allowed the Baylor Bears to win seven games in three matches. Sophomore Josie Kuhlman swept Rhianna Newborn in the first set and then only dropped one game in the second set to take the match, 6-0, 6-1. Fellow-sophomore Brooke Austin completed her match against Kiah Generette two minutes later for a 6-1, 6-1 victory. Danilina would get her first match-clinching victory with a 6-3, 6-1 win over Gabriela Ferriera to take the match for the Gators.
Up next, No. 3 Florida takes on the No. 20 Clemson Tigers on Sunday at the Ring Tennis Complex at 1 p.m.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 14, 2016 19:25:57 GMT -5
The #3 Gators are traveling to #1 California with an undefeated 5-0 record:
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - The No. 3-ranked University of Florida women's tennis team grabbed their second sweep of the weekend over the No. 20-ranked Clemson University Tigers on Sunday at the Ring Tennis Complex. The two match wins this weekend pushed Florida's home winning streak to 151 straight dual matches.
The Tigers tested the Gators early on in doubles play on Sunday. No. 14-ranked Josie Kuhlman and Belinda Woolcock defeated Ally Miller-Krasilnikov and Tristen Dewar, 6-2. Brooke Austin and Kourtney Keegan clinched the doubles point for the Orange and Blue. The Gator tandem was down 3-5 to Fernanda Navarro and Ayen Broomfield, but came back to win four-straight games and the match, 7-5.
Singles action saw the Gators sweep play on all six courts. No. 73-ranked Anna Danilina was once again the first Gator off the court with a 6-1, 6-0 win over Daniela Ruiz. Senior Brianna Morgan was next to complete her match with a 6-0, 6-1 victory over Ally Miller-Krasilnikov. No. 19 Austin defeated No. 11 Joana Eidukonyte, 6-0, 6-2 to clinch the match for the Gators.
The final three singles matches saw Kuhlman and Woolcock get their respective match wins. On Court 4, Keegan took the first set, 6-2. Clemson's No. 75-ranked Fernanda Navarro went up 2-4 in the second set. The Gator junior would force a tie at 6-all. A 7-1 tie break win gave the Gator the win and the Orange and Blue the sweep of the Tigers.
Up next, the Gators will take on the No. 1-ranked team in the nation, the California Bears, on Friday, Feb. 26 at 3 p.m. on the west coast.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 23, 2016 14:45:53 GMT -5
After taking last weekend off, the Gators travel to the west coast to take on #1 California and #14 Stanford:
GAINESVILLE, Fla.- .- Florida women's tennis head coach Roland Thornqvist addressed the media on Monday morning at the UF All Sports Press Conference.
The Gators were off from competition last week, but will travel to the west coast this weekend for another pair of ranked opponents. The Orange and Blue will face off against No. 1 California on Friday at 3:00 pm ET and then No. 14 Stanford on Sunday at 3:00 pm ET.
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