COLUMBIA, S.C. — After a commanding 4-2 victory over LSU in their first match SEC Tournament, the 34th ranked Vanderbilt men’s tennis team fell 4-0 to the second-seeded Florida Gators in quarterfinal play.
The Gator’s kicked off Friday morning’s match, clinching the doubles point with commanding performances on courts one and two. Pen Binet and Tate Allwardt fell on two to No. 68 Orkin/Lipman, 6-1. The score was repeated for the clinch as No. 1 Hidalgo/Watson downed VU’s No. 14 Rhys Johnson and Cameron Klinger, 6-1.
In singles action the Commodores faced a strong Gator lineup, which fielded four ranked singles players. Taking three straight, UF ended the Commodores chances of advancement.
Florida took the 2-0 advantage as No. 11 Diego Hidalgo defeated No. 34 Daniel Valent 6-3, 6-0. The Gators clinched the victory with two additional victories just as Klinger and Johnson were both on the verge of putting the Commodores on the board.
Alex Ross fell to McClain Kessler on court six, 6-2, 6-3. UF secured the sweep over VU as Kris Yee fell in a three setter on court five to Gordon Watson, 6-4, 1-6, 6-1.
Vanderbilt now looks towards the NCAA tournament, as regionals will take place May 8th-10th.
