Antoine Ghibaudo Named SEC Freshman of the Week
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Antoine Ghibaudo was named the Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Week for his efforts in Kentucky’s SEC opening win over Mississippi State, the league office announced Wednesday. The award marks the first in Ghibaudo’s young career as the Paris, France native earned his second career ranked singles win and extended his doubles win streak to six matches against the Bulldogs.
Ghibaudo made his Southeastern Conference debut on Monday afternoon, earning a pair of wins to help Kentucky extend its SEC regular season win streak to 15 matches and overall league win streak (regular season and tournament) to 21 matches.
Playing No. 1 singles as a true freshman, the ITA’s No. 1 newcomer earned his second career ranked singles victory by taking down two-time All-American and ITA No. 67 Petar Jovanovic in straight sets to earn the Cats’ first point of the match.
Down four match points at 4-5, 40-0 in the first set, Ghibaudo rattled off four straight return points to earn the break and even the frame, eventually pushing the set into a tiebreak, where Ghibaudo would cruise to victory. In the second, the Parisian would break in his first return opportunity, holding the advantage for the duration of the set and eventually serving out a 7-6 (3), 6-4 win.
On the doubles court, Ghibaudo continued his exceptional play, winning his sixth straight match and fifth straight in partnership with fellow Frenchman Charlelie Cosnet. The duo fell behind an early break at 4-1 in their No. 3 match against the Bulldogs but won the final five games of the set to take the 6-4 victory.
The Wildcats return to the court this Friday, playing in their first SEC road match at No. 37 Florida. The match from Gainesville is set to begin at 5 p.m. ET at the Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex.
All home matches will be played at the Hilary J. Boone Tennis Complex and admission is free to the public for all regular season contests. A live stream will be provided for all home matches on UKAthletics.com.
For the latest on UK Men’s Tennis, follow the Wildcats on X and Instagram at @UKMensTennis.
