Nine in-state programs competed for the 2024 Bedford Cup this weekend at the University of Florida, including FAU, FGCU, FSU, Miami, Stetson, UCF, UNF and USF.
Mattia Akcan, Francesco Cordova, Kevin Edengren and Tanapatt Nirundorn played in singles and doubles action for the Gators. Nirundorn is the only Gator with experience at the event having played in it last year. The Gators swept the 2023 edition of the tournament, including Nirundorn’s doubles championship.
Singles play was split into two brackets — Orange and Blue — while the doubles format had just one draw.
Singles Results
Nirundorn, the second seed in the Orange bracket, had a bye in the Round of 32 and defeated USF’s Thomas Pavlekovich-Smith, 6-2, 6-4, in the second round on Friday. Unfortunately, he fell in straight sets to UNF’s Andreas Scott in the quarterfinals on Saturday.
Edengren lost his opening-round matchup against Stetson’s Eder Blanco Fernandez, 3-6, 7-6(6), 6-3, in the Orange bracket. He defaulted in the consolation bracket.
In the opening round of the Blue singles draw, Cordova advanced in straight sets, 7-6, 5-3, over Florida Gulf Coast’s Stavros Hadjivarna, and Akcan fell in the opening round in three sets to Florida State’s Elias Sumann.
Cordova retired before the end of the second set in the Round of 16 due to injury. He was losing, 6-3, 5-3, before retirement.
Akcan won his first consolation match in straight sets, 6-1, 6-4, against UNF’s Benjamin Scott and advanced through the quarterfinals, defeating Miami’s Maximo Oberto, 6-2, 6-3. His run came to an end in the semifinals, losing 6-0, 7-5 against UNF’s Jean Deloziere.
Doubles Results
Nirundorn and Edengren teamed up for the event but didn’t end up playing a match. As the No. 3 seed, they earned a bye in the opening round and withdrew from the Round of 16.
Akcan and Cordova lost in the opening round, 6-2, to Florida State’s Jan Sebesta and Elias Sumann. The duo found some success in the consolation bracket’s quarterfinals, though, defeating Kartik Mandla and Lucas Olivier from Stetson, 6-4. They fell in the semifinals, 7-5, against Florida State’s Justin Lyons and Azariah Rusher.
What’s next?
Florida gets a week off from competition but returns to action Nov. 7-10 for ITA Sectionals. The Gators also have the Bonita Bay Classic at Florida Gulf Coast University on the schedule from Nov. 8-10, so expect the majority of Florida’s 10-man roster to be in action.
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This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: Florida tennis results from 2024 Bedford Cup
