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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
NCAA Final 16 - Florida
Rebels Drop Heartbreaker to No. 13 Florida in NCAAs
5/18/2018 | Men's Tennis
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - In a battle between two SEC teams, the Ole Miss men's tennis team dropped a heartbreaker (4-3) to No. 13 seed Florida in the NCAA Sweet Sixteen here Friday at the Cone-Kenfield Tennis Center.
The Rebels end their season at 16-13 and in the final 16 for the 17th time.
With rain in the area around Winston Salem, the match was moved to UNC and pushed back an hour to an 8 PM EST start.
The match came down to another exciting finish with freshman Finn Reynolds on court six, but this time unfortunately, it didn't go the Rebels way. Florida's McClain Kessler rallied to defeat Reynolds 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 to clinch the 4-3 match for the Gators.
The Rebels took the early momentum with an exciting finish in the doubles point. After Florida won on court one, 6-2, Zvonimir Babic and Filip Kraljevic teamed up for a 6-4 win on court two sending everyone to court three, where Fabian Fallert and Reynolds were coming back. After trailing 4-1, Fallert and Reynolds won five of the next six games to take a 6-5 lead. Serving for the point, the Rebel duo got down break points at 30-40. They tied it up and then Fallert served an ace on match point to clinch the win 7-5 and the 1-0 lead.
Florida tied the match with a quick win on court one, but then North Carolina native Grey Hamilton defeated Andy Andrade 6-2, 6-4 on court four to hand the Rebels a 2-1 lead in what would ultimately be his last match in a Rebel uniform.
The Gators earned straight set wins on courts five and three to get their first lead in the match, 3-2.
The Rebels would need both remaining matches to pull off another upset against a seeded team in the NCAA Championships and just like in Palo Alto, California, sophomore Tim Sandkaulen and Reynolds were left on the court.
Sandkaulen rallied from a set down to win his match 2-6, 6-3, 5-3, default. His opponent, Johannes Ingildsen, who Sandkaulen had faced twice before coming to Ole Miss, cramped up and could not finish the match.
All eyes then turned to court six, where Reynolds and Florida's Kessler were locked in the third set. After splitting sets, Reynolds got the early break to go up 2-0 in the third, but Kessler won four straight games for a 4-2 lead. The two traded service games for 5-3, and then Kessler broke Reynolds to win it 6-3 and clinch the match.
Quick Hits...
• The Rebels finished the season 16-13 and advanced to the Sweet Sixteen for the 17th time and first since 2012.
• The Rebels are now 53-27 in the NCAA Tournament.
• Ole Miss was one of just four schools to have both its tennis teams make the Sweet Sixteen. It was also the first time since 1999 for both to make it in the same year.
• Senior Grey Hamilton ended his career with a win and finished the year 7-3 at No. 4 singles
• Fabian Fallert and Finn Reynolds finished the year 6-1 at No. 3 doubles.
• Tim Sandkaulen has won four straight and ended the year 15-9 in dual matches and 8-3 at No. 2 singles. He leads the team with a 24-12 overall record.
#13 Florida 4, Ole Miss 3
Doubles
1. #5 Alfredo Perez/Johannes Ingildsen (UF) def. #22 Tim Sandkaulen/Grey Hamilton (OM) 6-2
2. #62 Filip Kraljevic/Zvonimir Babic (OM) def. #42 Chase Perez-Blanco/Oliver Crawford (UF) 6-4
3. Fabian Fallert/Finn Reynolds (OM) def. #36 Duarte Vale/McClain Kessler (UF) 7-5
Order of Finish: 1, 2, 3
Singles
1. #49 Oliver Crawford (UF) def. #45 Gustav Hansson (OM) 6-1, 6-1
2. #33 Tim Sandkaulen (OM) def. #28 Johannes Ingildsen (UF) 2-6, 6-3, 5-3, default
3. #14 Alfredo Perez (UF) def. #107 Filip Kraljevic (OM) 6-4, 6-2
4. Grey Hamilton (OM) def. Andy Andrade (UF) 6-1, 6-4
5. Chase Perez-Blanco (UF) def. Fabian Fallert (OM) 6-3, 6-4
6. McClain Kessler (UF) vs. Finn Reynolds (OM) 4-6, 6-3, 6-3
Order of Finish: 1, 4, 5, 3, 2, 6
At the Net with Head Coach Toby Hansson...
"We've been playing well in doubles lately and we knew that it might be an important point here today as well. I didn't feel like it was a necessity to win that point to be in this battle today but we played well. The key to getting to this point was that we were able to overcome adversity the entire year. We've had some issues with the team as far as health goes but we've been able to respond. We've handled it the right way and I'm proud of the guys and the way they competed all year. They left it all out there on the court."
Next up...
Tim Sandkaulen will compete in the NCAA Singles Championship and in the doubles with Fabian Fallert. The individual championships begin May 23 at the Wake Forest Tennis Complex.
For more information on Ole Miss Men's Tennis, follow the Rebels on Twitter @OleMissMTennis, on Facebook at OleMissMTennis and on Instagram at OleMissMTennis, follow Coach Hansson on Twitter at @TennisToby.
Players Mentioned
