March 25, 2012
LEXINGTON, Ky. — The seventh-ranked University of Kentucky men’s tennis team continued its unblemished mark in Southeastern Conference action with a dominating 4-1 win over No. 61 Alabama on Sunday at the Alabama Tennis Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Kentucky (18-4, 6-0 SEC) won both doubles matches that ended in a decision against the Crimson Tide, before sealing the watch with three straight-sets singles wins. The win was Kentucky sixth consecutive to start SEC play, which is the Wildcats’ best start in league action since the 1988 team went a school-best 8-0. The Wildcats are tied atop the SEC standing with No. 4 Georgia (16-1, 6-0 SEC), who defeated Arkansas and LSU this weekend in league play.
Overall, UK has now defeated 13 teams that are currently ranked in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association top 61, including five teams that are ranked in the top 25. In league play, the Wildcats have defeated No. 11 Florida, No. 19 Auburn, No. 26 LSU, No. 32 Arkansas, No. 40 South Carolina and No. 61 Alabama.
The Wildcats started the match with a strong performance in doubles, getting wins at courts one and three. Sophomores Tom Jomby and Alejandro Gomez were the first to finish with a dominating 8-4 victory over David Vieyra and Michael Thompson. UK’s No. 1 doubles tandem of senior Alex Musialek and junior Anthony Rossi then clinched the doubles point with convincing 8-3 win over Ricky Doverspike and Jarryd Botha. Play at court two was abandoned when Kentucky clinched the point. The match was on serve 5-5 between Kentucky’s Eric Quigley and Grant Roberts and Alabama’s Vikram Reddy and Carlos Taborga.
“Doubles was very good today and it needed to be for us to win this match,” UK head coach Dennis Emery said. “Musialek and Rossi played a great match at court one, which really set the tone for the entire match. Overall, it was a great performance for us.”
UK’s top three singles players shined to clinch the victory for Kentucky. No. 28 Rossi was the first to finish at three singles, earning an impressive 6-3, 6-0 win over Daniil Proskura to give the Wildcats a 2-0 lead in the match. Musialek, who is ranked 21st in the nation in singles, gave the Wildcats a commanding 3-0 lead after he took down Botha in straight sets 6-2, 6-0 at court two, before No. 5 Quigley finished off the win with a 6-4, 6-3 victory at court one over Doverspike.
“When you go on the road in this league it is important that the leaders of your team come ready to play and our leaders did that today,” Emery said. “Eric Quigley, Alex Musialek and Anthony Rossi all won their singles matches today in convincing fashion and that was great to see. Hopefully these wins will create some momentum for them as we head towards end of the season.”
Alabama (6-10, 1-5 SEC) won its lone point of the match at court four when Vieyra defeated UK’s Gomez 6-3, 6-4. Play on courts four and six were abandoned when the Wildcats claimed the match. Jomby had fallen in the first set to Reddy 6-4 while the two players were on serve in the second 4-4. At court six, Roberts was up two breaks 4-0 in the third set over Stuart Kenyon.
Kentucky will continue its three-match road trip next weekend against SEC foes No. 4 Georgia and No. 24 Tennessee. The Wildcats will face Georgia on Friday at 5 p.m. ET before concluding the weekend on Sunday against Tennessee at 1 p.m. ET. Live scores from both matches can be found at UKathletics.com.
For more information on the Kentucky men’s tennis team, follow “University of Kentucky men’s tennis team” on Facebook or “UKMensTennis” on Twitter.
Southeastern Conference Men’s Tennis Dual Match
No. 7 Kentucky 4, No. 61 Alabama 1
Alabama Tennis Stadium – Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Sunday, March 25, 2012
Singles
1 – No. 5 Eric Quigley (UK) def. Ricky Doverspike (UA) 6-4, 6-3
2 – No. 21 Alex Musialek (UK) def. Jarryd Botha (UA) 6-2, 6-0
3 – No. 28 Anthony Rossi (UK) def. Daniil Proskura (UA) 6-3, 6-0
4 – Vikram Reddy (UA) vs. No. 101 Tom Jomby (UK) 6-4, 4-4, unf.
5 – David Vieyra (UA) def. No. 99 Alejandro Gomez (UK) 6-3, 6-4
6 – Stuart Kenyon (UA) vs. Grant Roberts (UK) 0-6, 6-4, 0-4, unf.
Doubles
1 – Alex Musialek/Anthony Rossi (UK) def. Ricky Doverspike/Jarryd Botha (UA) 8-3
2 – Grant Roberts/Eric Quigley (UK) vs. Carlos Taborga/ Vikram Reddy (UA) 5-5, unf.
3 – Tom Jomby/Alejandro Gomez (UK) def. David Vieyra/Michael Thompson (UA) 8-4
Order of Finish:
Singles – 3, 2, 5, 1*
Doubles – 3, 1*
