Columbia News

The University of Missouri women's tennis team achieved a milestone victory by defeating No. 22 Florida, 4-3, at the Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex in Gainesville on Friday. This marks Missouri's first win over Florida in program history and is the team's highest-ranked victory since overcoming No. 17 Texas A&M in March 2017.

Missouri started strong by securing the doubles point after winning two out of three matches. Senior Inah Canete and junior Andrea Artimedi won their match on court two with a score of 6-0. Graduate student Lailaa Bashir and freshman Zoe Lazar clinched the doubles point on court three, finishing 6-3.

In singles play, Artimedi recorded a decisive win on court six, defeating her opponent 6-0, 6-0. Senior Mary Brumfield and Canete both faced nationally ranked opponents but fell short in their matches against No. 39 and No. 91 players, respectively. Freshman Korina Roso secured a win on court five with scores of 6-0, 6-3. Bashir clinched the overall team victory for Missouri by winning both sets on court three, finishing 7-5 and 7-6.

Head Coach Bianca Turati commented: "I am so proud of the whole team! There was an unbelievable amount of effort. Starting with winning the doubles point. This was the first-ever win for Mizzou against Florida, and it feels amazing. The team deserves it. Shoutout to Lailaa, who stepped up when it came down to her court. Andy and Korina had significant wins in singles, too. Andy and Inah performed very well in doubles, as did Zoe and Lailaa. Now, we move on to the next one with even more determination and awareness! It's a great day to be a Tiger! MIZ"

Missouri now holds an overall record of 11-7 (2-6 SEC), while Florida stands at 7-7 (3-6 SEC). The Tigers will next travel to Auburn to face No. 11 Auburn on Sunday.

For updates about Missouri Tigers women's tennis, fans can visit MUTigers.com or follow the team’s social media accounts.