Setting the Scene
LEXINGTON, Ky. ? The No. 33 Kentucky men?s tennis team (16-9, 7-4 Southeastern Conference) travels to face No. 28 Wake Forest this Saturday in Charlottesville, Va., for its 13th straight NCAA Tournament appearance. The Cats gained an at-large bid for their strong efforts this season where they finished fourth in the SEC. The match between UK and the Demon Deacons is scheduled to start at 1 p.m. EDT. The winner will advance to take on either Army or the regional host Virginia on Sunday at noon EDT. Fans can check ukathletics.com for live stats and recaps throughout UK?s tournament run.
Scouting the Possible Opponents
Wake Forest finished the regular season with a 15-10 record. The Demon Deacons also received an at-large bid to join this season?s field. The Deacons went 6-5 in the Atlantic Coast Conference and advanced to the conference’s tournament semifinals before being ousted by 10th-ranked Miami, 4-3. The Deacons have reached the round of 32 in two of the past three years. Wake Forest is led in singles action by 18th-ranked Todd Paul who is 26-12 on the season.
In the other first-round match, Army will be facing eighth-seeded Virginia. Army has a 12-15 record this season and received an automatic bid by winning the Patriot League tournament. The Cavaliers will host a regional for the third consecutive year. In each of the last two years, Virginia won first and second round matches at the Snyder Tennis Center to advance as one of 16 regional site winners to the NCAA Championships. Virginia began the spring team as the No. 1 team in the country and went 21-8 during the season. The Cavs reached the ACC tournament finals before falling to top-seeded Duke.
2006 SEC Tournament Recap
The No. 30 Kentucky men?s tennis team dropped its quarterfinals match on April 21, at the Southeastern Conference Tournament, 4-2 to upset-minded Mississippi State in Tuscaloosa, Ala. The contest between the fourth-seeded Wildcats and the 12th-seeded Bulldogs was delayed over an hour by rain and resumed indoors at the UA Tennis Complex. Kentucky gained the early 1-0 lead over MSU by claiming the doubles point, but the Bulldogs rallied to take four out of the fives singles matches. The victory for No. 62 MSU was its second-consecutive over a higher-seeded opponent in as many days. MSU defeated No. 20 LSU in its first-round match.
Cats in the Rankings
Kentucky enters this weekend?s matches ranked 33rd. All 12 of the teams in the SEC are ranked in the top 70. UK currently has three ranked players. UK?s highest ranked player is Hume at No. 37. The Alexandria, Va., native is tied for the team lead with 29 victories this season. Ranked No. 85 is freshman Bruno Agostinelli. Agostinelli is third on the team with 25 wins. Rounding out the Cats? ranked players is No. 107 Emge.
2005 NCAA Tournament Recap
In 2005, the Wildcats reached the round of 32 for the third consecutive season. Kentucky entered the tournament ranked 11th after going 20-9. UK hosted the first and second round of the tournament due to their top 16 ranking. Kentucky opened the 2005 NCAA men?s tennis regional in dominant fashion, defeating Horizon League champion Butler (15-3) by a 4-0 count. UK easily took the doubles points at the No. 1 and 3 spots, winning 8-2, 8-1, respectively. No. 3 Jesse Witten led the singles onslaught with a 6-4, 6-0 win of James Low at the top spot in the lineup.
In the second round, Kentucky fell 4-2 to No. 18 Florida State. The Seminoles claimed the doubles point before the Cats? Witten and Tigran Martirosyan each recorded singles wins, but it wasn?t enough as FSU took three other singles contests to advance. UK ended the 2005 slate at 21-10. Witten continued playing in College Station, Texas, at the NCAA Championships as a singles competitor. The Naples, Fla., native reached the quarterfinals where he fell to Harvard?s Jonathan Chu 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (6).
Next on Tap
The Cats will return to action on May 20-23 to compete for the Men?s NCAA Team Championship if they are able to advance from the Virginia regional. The final four rounds of the tournament will be played at Stanford?s Taube Tennis Center. Following the conclusion of team championship, Hume will compete for the national singles titles in Palo Alto, Calif.
