Loutit Plays Hero as Kentucky Knocks Off No. 12 Georgia
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Kentucky (15-10, 5-7 SEC) earned its highest ranked win of the season at the Hilary J. Boone Tennis Complex on Saturday, defeating No. 12 Georgia (15-7, 7-5 SEC) on Senior Day in a 4-3 comeback battle.
In a match that lasted four hours and 15 minutes, Kentucky was able to rally from a 3-1 deficit to claim the final three singles courts of the match to claim its second 4-3 victory of the season. The Wildcats were 1-4 in 4-3 matches this season entering the match.
The Wildcats celebrated seniors Martin Breysach, Charlelie Cosnet, and Jaden Weekes prior to the match but it was the junior class that stole the show. All three Kentucky singles points were scored by Wildcat juniors, with Matt Rankin, Eli Stephenson, and Jack Loutit delivering comeback victories. Stephenson and Loutit each won their matches in final set tiebreakers, with the latter delivering the clinch. After losing four matches this season on final set tiebreakers in the last match on, the Cats were able to flip the script today to secure the win.
Kentucky began the match on a high note, claiming the doubles point for the fifth consecutive match. No. 19 Loutit and Stephenson kicked off their undefeated day with a top 15 victory over No. 13 Arda Azkara and Santiago Giamichelle. The Wildcat duo was down an early break in the match but rallied for the 7-5 win.
No. 74 Breysach and Cosnet were able to dig out of a 5-2 deficit to force a tiebreaker on court two—the first of eight tiebreakers between the Cats and Dogs across the dual match—but ultimately fell 7-6 (4) to Will Jansen and Gabriele Vulpitta. Another tiebreaker would decide the doubles point, with Nicolas Arseneault and Jaden Weekes emerging victorious on court three with a 7-6 (4) victory over Derrick Chen and Noah Johnston.
Kentucky’s momentum was short lived, as Georgia raced out to first set victories on all six singles courts. The Bulldogs tied the match on court five, as Johnston defeated Mikael Arseneault in straight sets. However, the Cats were able to battle back and force third sets on four courts.
No. 101 Giamichelle gave Georgia a 2-1 lead, staving off a comeback attempt from Weekes with a 6-4, 1-6, 6-2 victory on court three. The Bulldogs came within a single point of victory after No. 49 Jansen withstood a pair of tiebreakers against No. 70 Nicolas Arseneault in a 7-6 (4), 7-6 (9) win on court two.
From this point, the Wildcats had their backs against the wall, needing all three of the remaining courts despite trailing by a break on two of them.
No. 24 Stephenson was the first Cat to put a singles point on the board. After a quick first set loss and falling behind an early break in the second, the junior All-American from Louisville rallied to whittle off five games in a row and force a third set against No. 35 Azkara. In the decider, Stephenson fell behind by a break in the early stages again, digging his way back to level ground midway through the frame. After successfully serving to keep his team alive twice, Stephenson once again fought back. Despite trailing in the breaker 4-2, the Wildcat willed his way to a 1-6, 6-3, 7-6 (5) win on the top court.
A minute later, the dual match was tied up, courtesy of Matt Rankin. After falling in a first set tiebreaker, Rankin found his groove in the second frame to easily force a third set. Rankin dropped his opening service game and help multiple break points, but still trailed for much of the set. However, the Scot fought his way back to even terms at 4-4 and, upon holding serve to gain a 6-5 lead, buckled down on the tails of his classmate’s win. Rankin worked his way to a 15-40 advantage in the return game and sealed the deal on his third match point, defeating Vulpitta, 6-7(2), 6-2, 7-5.
It appeared as if the Cats were about to turn a 3-1 deficit into a 4-3 win in the span of three minutes. When Stephenson and Rankin earned their wins, Loutit was leading 5-1 in his third set on court four. After battling back from a tough first set and a deficit in the second, Loutit raced through a second set tiebreaker and carried that momentum into a major third set lead. However, Derrick Chen was able to whittle away the lead with four games on the trot, including breaking Loutit twice. The Kiwi Wildcat broke back to take a 6-5 lead but was broken once again to send the match into a tiebreaker that would decide the dual.
Similar to the story of the set at large, Loutit would race to the advantage in the breaker, holding leads of 4-2, 5-3, and 6-5, where Chen saved his third match point of the day. After switching sides at a deadlock, Loutit was able to secure a minibreak and a fourth match point, one that he would finally convert to deliver Kentucky’s sixth top 25 win of the season.
The Wildcats will close out the regular season on the road next week, traveling to No. 7 LSU on Friday, April 10 and No. 24 Ole Miss on Sunday, April 12.
For the latest on UK Men’s Tennis, follow the Wildcats on X and Instagram at @UKMensTennis.
Kentucky vs. No. 12 Georgia
Doubles Results
- No. 19 Loutit/Stephenson (UK) def. No. 13 Azkara/Giamichelle (UGA) 7-5
- Jansen/Vulpitta (UGA) def. No. 74 Breysach/Cosnet (UK) 7-6 (4)
- N. Arseneault/Weekes (UK) def. Chen/Johnston (UGA) 7-6 (4)
Order of finish: 1, 2, 3
Singles Results
- No. 24 Eli Stephenson (UK) def. No. 35 Arda Azkara (UGA) 1-6, 6-3, 7-6 (5)
- No. 49 Will Jansen (UGA) def. No. 70 Nicolas Arseneault (UK) 7-6 (4), 7-6 (9)
- No. 101 Santiago Giamichelle (UGA) def. Jaden Weekes (UK) 6-4, 1-6, 6-2
- No. 71 Jack Loutit (UK) def. Derrick Chen (UGA) 2-6, 7-6 (3), 7-6 (6)
- Noah Johnston (UGA) def. Mikael Arseneault (UK) 6-4, 6-1
- Matt Rankin (UK) def. Gabriele Vulpitta (UGA) 6-7 (2), 6-2, 7-5
Order of finish: 5, 3, 2, 1, 6, 4
