Women's tennis thrives on chemistry

Roland Thornqvist says this is the most fun coaching he's had in years. Senior Whitney Benik thinks she knows why.

"In the four years I've been here, this is the first time that all seven of the teammates get along great," Benik said. "We never fight. We really care about each other. We work together. It makes it easier for him to coach us."

Florida will open the NCAA Tournament today by hosting Jacksonville at 6 p.m. at Linder Stadium. The sixth-seeded Gators are 20-2 and once again have national title aspirations. There is nothing unusual about that, until you consider what the Gators had to go through to arrive at this point.

The Gators lost their No. 1 singles player — senior All-American Diana Srebrovic — just weeks before their season began in January. At the same time, Florida was adjusting to the addition of two players: Freshman Julia Cohen and sophomore Marrit Boonstra.

"We lost Diana, but we really picked up Marrit and Julia," Thornqvist said. "From a numbers and talent standpoint, we actually got better. I think our leadership got better, too, for some reason. Our appetite for tennis got better also. A lot of things happened in January and everything came together in January."

Srebrovic began experiencing back pain in early January and doctors were never able to diagnose the injury, according to Thornqvist.

Srebrovic, who transferred from Virginia prior to her sophomore season, played every dual match at the No. 1 position for Florida as a junior. She was ranked as high as No. 1 in the country as a sophomore.

The loss was felt by the team.

"Diana is a very good player," sophomore Megan Alexander said. "She's a very big part of this team. But it is a team. We were sad that she was hurt. But we kept playing. It brought us closer together."

Benik said she was unsure how Srebrovic's loss would impact the team.

"In the beginning I probably thought we wouldn't be as good," Benik said. "She's my roommate and one of my best friends so for me it was really hard in the beginning. But I think it has worked out."

Cohen is one major reason why. A Philadelphia native, Cohen was one of the top junior players in the country and was close to turning pro last fall. However, she decided in November to go to college.

Cohen made a last-minute visit to Florida and decided to join the Gators.

Florida is glad she did. Cohen is 13-5 at No. 1 singles for the Gators this season.

Boonstra, meanwhile, was a member of the Gators in the fall but could not play until the spring because the NCAA was reviewing her transcript. Boonstra is 11-2 on the season in singles and has teamed with Alexander at No. 1 doubles to post a 13-1 mark.

Even more importantly, though, Boonstra and Cohen have blended right in with their teammates despite joining the team late. Benik said the team's newfound chemistry has been a huge factor in overcoming Srebrovic's loss.

"Everyone has mutual respect for each other," Benik said. "We watch what we say and help each other out. Girls normally don't tend to do that much. Girls are catty a lot of the time and I think all of us know how good we are and we want to win a championship and we do whatever we can to help each other out."

Alexander agrees.

"We all get along," she said. "There's been very little drama. He (Thornqvist) hasn't had to deal with that. Our chemistry ... we get along really well. We're a talented team and we all want it."

That's made Thornqvist's job much easier.

"This is the most fun I've had in years," he said. "This team has been really, really good. This team has been fun to coach. They listen, they try, they're coachable."