May 10, 2002
The ninth-ranked University of Kentucky men’s tennis team begins its bid for an NCAA title on Saturday, May 11 at 1 p.m. against Murray State in the first round of the 2002 NCAA Men’s Tennis Championship. After receiving a top seed in the Midwest Region, the Cats play host to first and second round action at the Hilary J. Boone Tennis Center on the UK campus. The other first round match-up between the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Vanderbilt Commodores will take place at 9 a.m.
Kentucky opened its dual-match season against the Racers on Jan. 23 with a 5-1 victory. Suffering from injury at the time, senior Johan Grunditz was the only Cat to drop a match at the No. 1 spot. Against the other participants, UK defeated Vanderbilt in its last regular season Southeastern Conference match, 6-1, on April 12, while the Cats last met Ohio State in the 2000-01 season for a Valentine heartbreaking 4-3 loss on Feb. 14.
UK, seeded seventh among the 64-team field, will look to advance to the second round to face the Buckeyes/Commodores winner on Sunday, May 12 at 2 p.m. The winner of that match-up will be one of 16 teams advancing to the final championship rounds in College Station, Texas at Texas A & M University, May 18-21.
This weekend’s action can be followed by live scoring on the official UK athletics website at www.ukathletics.com. Admission is $5 for adults and $3 for students and senior citizens.