May 16, 2015
No. 8 Vanderbilt hands No. 6 Florida first SEC loss, 4-1
Commodores bound for SEC Tournament Finals
WACO, Texas – After an enthusiastic 4-0 victory over the Clemson Tigers, the fourth-overall seeded Vanderbilt Commodores head to quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2004. In an inter-conference collision, the Commodores will face Florida Sunday at either 4:00 pm or at 7:00 pm CT depending on the weather. With weather a mystery, Vanderbilt could be playing another round indoors or play under the lights of Baylor’s Hurd Tennis Center.
“Florida is a storied program and we have the utmost respect for them”, said head coach Geoff Macdonald. “We’ve had two great battles with them this year that both went our way. It’ll be pretty much similar matchups to the one before (SEC semifinals) and we’ll just get ready to compete. It will be a blast to compete.”
In what is historically an exhilarating matchup, VU and UF meet for the second year in a row in the NCAA tournament. Last season the Gators defeated Vanderbilt 4-0 to earn an appearance in the 2014 Elite Eight. Friday evening UF swept the Oklahoma State Cowgirls to advance. Both the SEC and Pac-12 are tied with three league teams still in tournament contention. The Georgia Bulldogs also compete in tomorrow’s quarterfinals, taking on Stanford at Noon.
But this season the Commodores have proven to be too much for the Gators as Vandy delivered Florida its sole conference loss of league play (4-1) and almost two weeks later knocked UF out of the SEC tournament contention (4-2).
Before the 2015 campaign Vanderbilt owned a losing 47-2 record against the Orange and Blue. While it will take time for the record to level, this season has proven to be fruitful with the `Dores doubles their wins and registering their first season with wins against both UF and UGA.
Sunday’s match will be a can’t miss event in collegiate tennis as the fourth and fifth-overall seeds duke it out with the Final Four on the horizon. Tandems play in particular will be key for the `Dores to excel in as the Gators are 19-0 when winning the tandems point. VU’s Nos. 2 and 3 doubles clinched the point for VU during both competitions this season.
The Gators have flourishing young freshman in their singles lineup, which have caused commotion on the courts for opponents, but Vanderbilt’s seasoned veteran lineup has proven to be one of the lone thorns in side of the 2015 Gator squad. Showing persistence and all-around talent, every member of the Vanderbilt lineup has aided in the Commodores successes over Florida.
VU hopes its trend of success against the Gators continues tomorrow evening. Live scoring and Baylor’s live blog will be running during quarterfinal play regardless of where the match is played. If the `Dores play outside live video is a great feature which will allow fans to watch each court.
Live Stats: HERE
Live Blog: HERE
Live Video (Outdoor matches only): HERE
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