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Gators sweep Knights

Florida moves on to face Miami in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

By ANTONYA ENGLISH, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published May 11, 2002

GAINESVILLE -- Jessica Lehnhoff's 47-minute victory at No.1 singles and a strong showing in doubles helped lead the Florida women's tennis team to a 4-0 victory over Central Florida on Friday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Gators (20-1), ranked No. 1 in the Collegiate Tennis poll, play Miami (14-6), a 4-2 winner over Florida International, at 4 p.m. today in the second round in Linder Stadium at Ring Tennis Complex.

Lehnhoff and Florida coach Roland Thornqvist said they were concerned a 19-day layoff might hurt. "When I don't play (many) matches in a row, I definitely get a little rusty," said Lehnhoff, who defeated Emmanuell Sauze 6-0, 6-1. "I go out there and focus on things to do, and it worked. I served, to my surprise, really well." With temperatures rising above 100 degrees on the court, the weather was as much a factor as Central Florida.

"We played under extreme conditions," Thornqvist said. "After we won the doubles, the message was let's not lollygag. If (winning singles) can be done quick, let's be quick. That's key any time we play on consecutive days."

The Gators opened with two doubles victories. Lehnhoff and Lindsay Dawaf beat Julie Pecastaing and Anna Westin 8-2, and Annika Bengtsson and Zerene Reyes beat Sauze and Kristina Lohmos 8-2. Reyes, a freshman, dominated at No.3, 6-1, 6-2 over Marieke Gunawan.

"I knew how to play her," Reyes said. "She didn't move well on the angles, and that's my kind of match."

Central Florida coach Sonja Prokopec said she knew the Golden Knights were in for a challenge, but it was a match they looked forward to playing.

"Even though we got beat pretty badly, the reason I absolutely wanted to play this match was because I wanted them to see we can compete," Prokopec said. "We want to play the best, and that's what we got today."

TAMPA: Marissa Singer, a highly ranked USTA player from Bayonne, N.J., signed.

-- Information from Times wires was used in this report.

NCAA MEN'S TENNIS

WHAT: First and second rounds.

WHEN/WHERE: Today and Sunday; Linder Stadium, Ring Tennis Complex, Gainesville.

SCHEDULE: South Florida vs. Miami, 8 a.m.; Florida vs. Georgia State, 1 p.m. First-round winners advance to Sunday's second round at noon.

TICKETS: All-session pass -- $8 for adults, $5 for senior citizens, college students and youth 17 and under. Today -- $5 for adults, $3 for senior citizens, college students and youth 17 and under. Admission Sunday is $3.

AT STAKE: The winner advances to the NCAA round of 16, which begins Thursday in Palo Alto, Calif.

OF NOTE: Led by first-year coach Andy Jackson, Florida's 9-1 start was its best 10-match start since 1991. The Gators, 16-6 and ranked No.12 in the Collegiate Tennis poll, defeated two of the three teams in the field 4-3 during the regular season (USF and Georgia State). Against Georgia State, the Gators were without their No.1 and No.2 singles players, Hamid Mirzadeh and Eleazar Magallan. Florida is 10-0 at home in the NCAA Tournament and 10-1 at Linder Stadium this season. USF advanced after winning the C-USA tournament, defeating the No.1 (TCU) and No.2 seeds (Tulane) in succession. The Bulls won earlier this season at Miami.

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