Feb. 13, 2002

– The University of Kentucky men’s tennis team took a jump from No. 23 to No. 10 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association’s Omni Hotel National Rankings on Wednesday, Feb. 13. Two other Southeastern Conference programs join the Wildcats in the top 10, Georgia at No. 3 and Ole Miss at No. 6. The SEC is well represented in this week’s rankings with all 12 schools in the top 32.

The Wildcats opened the dual-match season 5-0 before suffering their first loss to then No. 3 UCLA, 4-3. Last week, Kentucky finished the USTA/ITA National Team Indoor Championships with wins over then No. 8 Southern Methodist University and No. 4 Tennessee after losing to UCLA in the opening round.

“Our competition at the National Indoors really boosted our confidence,” Coach Dennis Emery said. “I am just happy to see the hard work of our team paying off and being recognized. I am very proud of this team.”

Kentucky finished the 2000-01 season at No. 25 after finishing with a 15-15 dual match record. This season, the Cats stand at 7-2 with a tough road ahead of them. The Cats face Florida Gulf Coast University on Feb. 23 before opening the SEC schedule on the road at Tennessee and Georgia, Mar. 1 and 3.