ORLANDO, Fla. – The No. 22 UCF women's tennis team pulled out a thrilling victory over No. 21 Florida, beating the Gators 4-3 for their first win of the season. Freshman Jaleesa Leslie clinched the match for the Knights on court six, sealing the match in dramatic fashion.
"Really proud of Jaleesa today," said head coach Bryan Koniecko. "She's a freshman and this was her first match in this environment. Last weekend she wasn't able to pull through but this weekend she was. That was a big win for her and really excited for her and the team to keep getting better."
This is just the second time the Knights have faced Florida during the Koniecko era. Both matches were 4-3 decisions in which the last court standing was the No. 6 singles spot. UCF had never beaten the Gators prior to the last two meetings.
The doubles segment got started with a big win on court three where Evgeniya Levashova and Nandini Sharma cruised to a 6-1 victory over Amber McGinnis and Lyane Sleeth. The final two courts were tight down the stretch, but it was No. 60 Ksenia Kuznetsova and Valeriya Zeleva edging Sara Dahlstrom and Ida Jarlskog 7-5 to clinch the doubles point. Court one went unfinished as No. 6 Rebeka Stolmar and Marie Mattel were tied with No. 26 McCartney Kessler 5-5.
The first sets were split evenly between the two sides. Despite the tight first frames, the Knights jumped out to an early lead on the scoreboard. Kuznetsova won with ease on court five, securing a 6-0, 6-1 victory over Dahlstrom. No. 67 Zeleva followed suit soon after, picking up a 6-3, 6-3 win over Jarlskog.
Florida creeped their way back into the match one singles court at a time. No. 65 Sleeth topped No. 72 Mattel on court four by a count of 6-2, 6-3. The Gators took court one next, where No. 32 Kessler defeated No. 95 Levashova 7-5, 6-0.
Both remaining courts were in favor of the Knights when court one fell. No. 42 Stolmar jumped out to a lead in the third set but saw Zein work her way back to claim a 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 victory.
The match rested in the hands of the rookie from Apopka. Leslie dropped the first set before edging Berlin in a tight second stanza. The final frame was back and forth in the beginning, but saw Leslie pull away and secure the 3-6, 7-5, 6-3 win.
UCF will face the Gators one more time during the regular season. The Knights are scheduled to go to Gainseville on Feb. 9 for the return match of the scheduled home-and-home.
UP NEXT
The Knights are back in action at 1 p.m. on Saturday as they host Georgia Southern.
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