March 4, 2010

LEXINGTON, Ky. — Looking to start the Southeastern Conference portion of its 2010 schedule on a strong note, the eighth-ranked University of Kentucky men’s tennis team welcomes Mississippi State and Ole Miss to the Hilary J. Boone Indoor Tennis Complex this weekend.

The Wildcats begin their 11-match league schedule on Friday when they play host to No. 40 Mississippi State (6-3) at 4 p.m. ET. Kentucky will play its second conference match on Sunday when No. 15 Ole Miss (8-1) visits for a 1 p.m. ET contest. The Rebels will play Vanderbilt in Nashville on Friday before traveling to Lexington. 

Kentucky (9-4) boasts two top-40 players listed in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association’s singles rankings in sophomores No. 8 Eric Quigley (Pewee Valley, Ky.) and No. 37 Alex Musialek (Dax, France). UK’s doubles team of Quigley and junior Brad Cox (Duluth, Ga.) is listed No. 15 in the nation.  

Mississippi State has two ranked singles players in the ITA poll in No. 100 Louis Cant and No. 101 George Coupland. Ole Miss boasts two ranked singles players in No. 53 Tucker Vorster and No. 81 Marcel Thiemann. Neither the Bulldogs nor the Rebels have a doubles tandem in the rankings.

Kentucky owns a 4-4 record against ranked teams with victories over then-No. 2 Virginia, then-No. 13 Illinois, then-No. 16 Wake Forest and then-No. 41 Michigan. UK’s four setbacks have come against squads currently listed in the top 16 in the country, three of which are in the top 10.

Last season, No. 13 Kentucky defeated No. 60 Mississippi State 4-0 in Starkville, Miss. The Wildcats and Bulldogs first met in 1936. Mississippi State leads the all-time record against the Cats 14-10, but the Wildcats have won the last three meetings.

Kentucky trails the all-time series with the Rebels 25-24. Last year, the Wildcats lost to the second-ranked Rebels 5-2 in Oxford, Miss. Kentucky is looking for its first win against Ole Miss since the 2002 SEC Tournament when the Wildcats beat the Rebels 4-3. The victory was the second of two matches won by the Wildcats in the series that season.

The matches are free of charge and live results will be provided on ukathletics.com.