Oct. 25, 2002
Six members of the Kentucky men’s tennis team competed today in the main draw of the 2002 Omni Hotels Region III Indoor Championships at the Hilary J. Boone Tennis Center and the Lexington Tennis Club in Lexington, Ky. Sophomore Jesse Witten and juniors Karim Benmansour and Rahim Esmail all advanced to Saturday’s Round of 32.
Witten, the No. 1 seed in the draw, took care of LSU’s Jason Hazley in straight sets, 6-2, 6-4. No. 7 seed Benmansour breezed by opponent with a 6-0, 6-1 win over Florida’s Jordan Dolberg. Esmail was able to get the 6-3, 6-2 victory over Florida’s Trey Johnson.
Witten will next play Vanderbilt freshman, Matthew Lockin in the Round of 32. Benmansour’s opponent will be South Florida’s Juan Barragan. Esmail will face Mississippi’s Alex Hartman for the second time this season. Esmail upset the 19th-ranked Hartman in the ranked flight of the Charles Fluitt Invitational in September. Hartman is seeded 5th in the tournament.
In the first round of today’s draw, senior Elliott Datlow fell to Miami’s Eric Hechtman, 6-4, 6-3. Junior Matt Emery won the first set against Memphis’ Lee Taylor Walker but couldn’t keep the momentum as he was beaten 4-6, 6-2, 6-2. Austin, the No. 14 seed in the tournament, was upset by Middle Tennessee’s 6-3, 7-6(6).
All matches in the rounds of 32 and 16 will be played at the Boone Indoor Center on UK’s campus. Benmansour’s first match is at approximately 9:30 am. Esmail will follow at 11 and Witten’s will play at about 12:30 pm. The round of 16 matches will follow the round of 32 matches Saturday afternoon.
