ATHENS, Ga. - Defending NCAA champion Stanford fell one step short in its bid to repeat for the first time since 2004-06, dropping a 4-1 decision to No. 1 Florida on Tuesday night at the NCAA Championships.
The latest chapter of the sport's best rivalry was won by Florida, which beat Stanford for the second time this season but only for the fifth time in the last 12 meetings overall. Stanford and Florida have combined to win six of the last eight NCAA crowns.
This time around, Stanford (26-3) was unable to capitalize on another postseason in which it outperformed its seeding. The No. 7 seed Cardinal knocked off No. 2 North Carolina and No. 3 Ohio State along the way, and has now won 16 of its last 19 NCAA matches when seeded lower than its opponent dating back to 2010.
Florida (29-3), which defeated Stanford 4-1 in Gainesville, Florida, back on Feb. 19, set the tone early in doubles to take a 1-0 lead.
The Gators padded their lead at 2-0, following Kourtney Keegan's 6-0, 6-0 victory over freshman Emma Higuchi on court six. It was a rare loss for Higuchi, who was riding a 22-match winning streak since her last loss on Jan. 15. Higuchi wrapped up her rookie campaign at 33-4 overall and 22-1 in duals.
Florida then moved in front 3-0 after Belinda Woolcock defeated senior Caroline Doyle 6-1, 6-3 at the No. 1 spot.
Stanford needed to sweep all four remaining courts but had already booked three first sets. In the fourth match, freshman Emily Arbuthnott was gaining momentum and headed for a third set.
Sophomore Melissa Lord accounted for Stanford's only point, cruising past Josie Kuhlman 6-4, 7-5 on court two. Lord remained perfect in 10 career postseason matches.
Trailing 3-1, Stanford was gaining momentum on the back courts. Arbuthnott was leading 4-2 and sophomore Caroline Lampl had battled back to 4-4.
However, Ingrid Neel had already built enough of a lead to withstand a valiant comeback effort from senior Taylor Davidson at the No. 3 position, prevailing 5-7, 6-3, 6-2.
Stanford was awarded with three representatives on the All-Tournament Team: Lord (No. 2 singles), Davidson (No. 3 singles) and Arbuthnott (No. 5 singles).
Florida 4, Stanford 1
DOUBLES
1) No. 11 Danilina/Neel (FLA) d. No. 39 Arbuthnott/Davidson (STAN) 6-2
2) No. 46 Doyle/Lord (STAN) led No. 20 Austin/Keegan (FLA) 4-3, abandoned
3) No. 45 Kuhlman/Woolcock (FLA) d. Higuchi/Lampl (STAN) 6-1
Order of Finish: 1, 3
SINGLES
1) No. 6 Belinda Woolcock (FLA) d. No. 38 Caroline Doyle (STAN) 6-1, 6-3
2) No. 28 Melissa Lord (STAN) d. No. 23 Josie Kuhlman (FLA) 6-4, 7-5
3) No. 31 Ingrid Neel (FLA) d. No. 54 Taylor Davidson (STAN) 5-7, 6-3, 6-2
4) No. 44 Anna Danilina (FLA) led No. 90 Caroline Lampl (STAN) 4-6, 6-1, 5-4, abandoned
5) Emily Arbuthnott (STAN) led Brooke Austin (FLA) 2-6, 7-5, 4-2, abandoned
6) No. 59 Kourtney Keegan (FLA) d. No. 71 Emma Higuchi (STAN) 6-0, 6-0
Order of Finish: 6, 1, 2, 3
Stanford Head Coach Lele Forood
"Well, they came out very strong in the doubles with a lot of power so that created a little bit of a tough road when you have to find four. They started pretty well in a lot of the singles matches and we made a nice push to get back in it. We won some second sets and I was really happy for Melissa (Lord) to get a win before we ran out of good fortune. They're a very strong team and their seniors played phenomenally. Our team fought hard and we were fighting back in a couple matches but we just couldn't find that one extra."
Stanford Sophomore Melissa Lord
"It was a tough match and she (Josie Kuhlman) played really well. I think at this tournament it's fun playing alongside your teammates. It's your last match out there so you give it your all. I think that's what worked for me."