Filip Planinsek Knocks Off Top-Ranked Gator in Tennis
Alabama men's tennis player Filip Planinsek came from behind Friday to defeat Florida's Ben Shelton in singles competition 2-6, 6-1, 6-3. The win was significant because Shelton was ranked No. 1 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Singles Rankings.
The Crimson Tide dropped the overall match to the No. 3-ranked Gators 5-2, with Florida winning the doubles point and four of the six singles matches.
Planinsek is currently ranked No. 60 by the ITA. The freshman from Slovenia has been a Slovenian National Singles Champion in the U16 and U18 age bracket. He is also a five-time Slovenia National Champion in doubles.
On Friday, Sam Riffice and Ben Shelton defeated Planinsek and his doubles partner Patrick Kaukovalta 6-4.
The singles win moved Planinsek to 20-11 on the year. Shelton lost for only the fourth time in singles play making his record 27-4.
Shelton now holds a 4-3 record over players ranked inside the top-50 by the ITA. He also has victories over George Harwell of Vanderbilt, Ronald Hohmann of LSU and Finn Reynolds of Ole Miss.
The team loss drops Alabama to 6-17 overall with an 0-9 record in Southeastern Conference play. Florida improves to 18-2 overall with a 10-0 record in the SEC.
Planinsek and the rest of the Tide will host a double-header on Sunday starting with No. 9 South Carolina at 1 p.m. They will then welcome the UAB Blazers with the match scheduled to start at 6 p.m. Both matches will be played inside the Alabama Tennis Stadium.
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