March 1, 2012

Match Notes 

ATHENS----- Fourth-ranked Georgia opens SEC action Friday by playing host to No. 22 South Carolina Friday and No. 15 Florida Sunday.

The Bulldogs (10-1) face the Gamecocks (7-1) at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex at 2:30 p.m. On Sunday, the Bulldogs battle the Gators (6-1) here at 1 p.m. 

“We’re excited to start the SEC portion of our schedule, and we’re going to play a couple of the strongest teams in our league right away here in South Carolina and Florida,” said Georgia coach Jeff Wallace. “We’ve talked with our team about the importance of each SEC match, and they have a clear understanding of what it’s going to take to accomplish our goals this season. They know that each time they step out on the court, they need to bring their best. This year’s team already has shown a lot of heart and fight and found ways to win when they got behind.”

Twice this season, Georgia has found itself trailing late in matches and rallied for 4-3 wins; the first came at Georgia Tech on Feb. 21, and the most recent example was here this past Friday against Memphis. Georgia’s lone defeat this year came to No. 7 California in the quarterfinals of the ITA National Team Indoor Championships last month in Virginia.

Georgia climbed to No. 4 this week. These rankings were the first of the season based on the computer point-per-match formula. It takes in to account teams who have navigated through a tough schedule, collecting impressive wins. Teams that played in the ITA National Team Indoors moved up including UCLA who won the title and now occupies the top spot. Florida did not and the Gators dropped from No. 2 to No. 15.

Entering Friday’s action, freshman Lauren Herring has a team-best 22-5 singles record including 10-1 in dual matches. She earned SEC Player of the Week honors this past week. In doubles, Herring is 22-8 with sophomore Kate Fuller. The doubles team of Lilly Kimbell and Maho Kowase are 10-2 this year including 8-0 at No. 3. Also in singles, senior Chelsey Gullickson, ranked No. 11, and Fuller are 21-6 in singles. The team of Gullickson and Nadja Gilchrist are ranked No. 6 with a 15-4 record.

Georgia won a pair of matches last week over No. 53 Memphis and No. 17 Clemson. Georgia rallied past Memphis 4-3 and then blanked Clemson 7-0. Meanwhile, South Carolina has won five in a row including a 6-1 decision over Winthrop last Sunday. The only loss for USC came to #13 Ga. Tech on Jan. 28 in Atlanta. Gamecock senior Anya Morgina is a perfect 7-0 at No. 1 and 13-3 overall while junior Jaklin Alawi is 6-1 at No. 2 and 17-3 overall. Florida’s loss this year came to then No. 2 Stanford 5-2 in Palo Alto on Feb. 12. This past Wednesday, they shut out Florida State 7-0 in Gainesville. They opened SEC play at #5 Tennessee on March 2. Gator junior Allie Will is ranked No. 1 in singles and No. 13 in doubles with Sofie Oyen.