LEXINGTON ? The 31st-ranked Kentucky women?s tennis team kicks off the postseason on Thursday morning at the Boone Tennis Center when if faces Mississippi State in the first round of the Southeastern Conference Tournament.
Seeded sixth, UK is hosting the event for the second time in 10 years. The Wildcats and Bulldogs kick off the tournament on the Stadium Courts while No. 7 LSU ? the SEC West co-champion ? meets No. 10 Ole Miss at the same time on the Seaton Courts adjacent to the stadium.
The tournament continues at the conclusion of each match with the remaining two first round contests. On the Stadium Courts, No. 5 Tennessee squares off against No. 12 Alabama while West co-champ Auburn, seeded eighth, meets ninth-seeded Arkansas on the Seaton Courts.
The winner of Thursday?s UK-Mississippi State contest faces third-seeded Vanderbilt on Friday at 10 a.m. The Wildcats and Commodores squared off in a tight contest this past Saturday with Vandy scoring a 6-1 win. However, three singles points came in three-set wins while the doubles point was decided in a tiebreaker on court three.
Top-seeded Georgia awaits the Auburn-Arkansas winner on Friday while second-seeded and defending-tournament champion Florida faces the LSU-Ole Miss winner. Fourth-seeded South Carolina takes on the Tennessee-Alabama victor.
Semifinal matches on Saturday are scheduled for 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. and Sunday?s championship is slated for Noon.
Single-day tickets are $6 for adults and $4 for children or seniors while tournament passes cost $15, or $10 for children and seniors.
Kentucky opened the year on a tear, going 15-1 in its first 16 matches, the best start in program history. However, down the stretch, UK dropped five of its last seven, all in tough fashion to top 20 squads in league play.
The Wildcats are led into play by senior Joelle Schwenk and freshman Sarah Woestmann, each of whom were named to the All-SEC team on Tuesday. Woestmann, who enrolled in January, would have been a favorite for SEC Freshman of the Year had she competed all year, having knocked off the eventual winner, Yvette Hyndman of Georgia during the season.
Kentucky has reached the championship match of the last two SEC Tournaments before falling to the Gators.
