No. 1 UF Women Beat UNC for ITA Indoors Title

The University of Florida’s Ingrid Neel (photo: UF)

The No. 1-ranked University of Florida women’s team won their first ITA National Team Indoor Championship in 18 years on Monday, defeating No. 2 North Carolina 4-2 in the championship match at Yale University’s Cullman-Heyman Tennis Center.

Florida freshman Ingrid Neel clinched the match, upsetting No. 17-ranked UNC sophomore Jessie Aney 6-4, 1-6, 6-3.

“The kid is amazing,” said UF Head Coach Roland Thornqvist of Neel, who enrolled in January. “We’re so blessed to have her. I love her to death and not just on the court. Off the court, she is amazing. She makes everyone in the locker room happy. She makes everyone on the court better. What she did out there — coming in January. Her poise and composure she played with was just spectacular. I was impressed.”

UF won the doubles point behind the victories of No. 22-ranked Anna Danilina/Neel, and No. 17-ranked Belinda Woolcock/Josie Kuhlman.

Other singles winners were No. 5 Brooke Austin who beat UNC’s Chloe Ouellet-Pizer 6-1, 6-1, and No. 6 Kourtney Keegan who came from a set down to defeat UNC’s Cassandra Vazquez 4-6, 6-1, 6-1.

“This has been a long-time coming,” Thornqvist said. “We’ve played well at the Indoors before, but this is a special group. I had a feeling that we had a chance just by the way we hit the ball…It’s going to be interesting now because we have another huge weekend next weekend at home against the defending national champion and the national runner-up from last year.”

Florida en route to the final defeated No. 13 Michigan, No. 12 Texas Tech, and No. 6 Georgia 4-0. It was the seventh overall ITA Indoors title for the Gators, who improved to 7-5 all-time in ITA Indoors finals.

For full results go to http://floridagators.com/news/2017/2/13/womens-tennis-gators-win-ita-national-indoor-championship.aspx.

Gardnar Mulloy ‘Celebration of Life’ at University of Miami in March

A “Celebration of Life” will be held for USTA Florida Hall of Fame member, former U.S. Davis Cup competitor, and multiple Grand Slam title winner Gardnar Mulloy, who died last November at the age of 102. The University of Miami Newman Alumni Center in Miami will host the event on Thursday, March 23, 2017 from 6-8 p.m.

“Gardnar will always be special to USTA Florida as one of the four founding fathers of our association, along with Edward Turville, Eddie Herr, and Clarence Varner,” said USTA Florida Executive Director Doug Booth.

Born in Washington D.C., Mulloy grew up in Miami and made the city his home base. He played tennis for the University of Miami, then coached the team, recruiting Pancho Segura who won three straight NCAA singles titles from 1943-45. He was inducted into the University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame in 1967 as part of its inaugural class. His valued team ethic translated to the pro tour and Davis Cup where he was a member of three winning teams for the U.S. in 1946 and ’48-49.

The UM Newman Alumni Center is located at 6200 San Amaro Drive in Miami. Donations may be made to the University of Miami Athletics Tennis Gift Fund in memory of Mulloy.

For addition info call (305) 284-6699.

Feb. Wild Card Event for $15K USTA Pro Circuit Vero Beach

The Boulevard Tennis Club will host the second of two men’s wild card singles events for the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships, a $15,000 USTA Pro Circuit event, on Feb. 28-March 2, 2017, in Vero Beach, Fla.

The winner will be awarded a main draw singles wild card into the 2017 Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships to be played April 25-30 at Grand Harbor Golf & Beach Club in Vero Beach.

Played on clay courts, matches will be best-of-two sets with a 10-point super-tiebreaker played in lieu of a third set.

Grand Slam title winners Andy Roddick and Thomas Johansson, Olympic gold medalist Nicolas Massu, Mardy Fish, Milos Raonic, Tim Henman, and former world No. 2 Magnus Norman are just some of the players who have competed over the years at the USTA Pro Circuit’s Vero Beach Futures event, now known as the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation Tennis Championships.

Founded in 2007, the Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation is a non-profit tennis foundation benefiting children, named for Vero Beach native son Mardy Fish, a former Top 10 tennis star, U.S. Davis Cup hero and silver medalist at the 2004 Olympic Games. The foundation currently supports more than 2,100 children in 15 elementary schools and six middle schools in Indian River County, Fla., providing after-school exercise, nutritional and enrichment programs in a safe environment to prepare them for healthy, productive and successful lives.
 
Entry fees, which benefit the non-profit Mardy Fish Children’s Foundation, are $60. Credit card entries are now being accepted at www.VeroBeachTennisTickets.com and cash/check entries can be made by e-mailing Randy Walker at RWalker@NewChapterMedia.com.