Kentucky senior All-American Jesse Witten retained his top-five standing in the men?s singles rankings released Thursday by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA).

The Naples, Fla., native remains the nation?s third-ranked men?s singles player after entering the preseason last fall with the same ranking. The rankings released this afternoon mark the eighth-consecutive poll in which Witten has held a top-10 ranking, dating back to Mar. 22, 2004. Witten turned in a 13-2 fall record and nearly won his first national championship. Witten earned a spot in the final of the ITA National Indoor Championships, but Illinois? Ryler DeHeart thwarted Witten?s title bid with a straight-set victory.

Senior Tigran Martirosyan and junior Nate Emge join Witten in the rankings. Martirosyan comes in at No. 108 while Emge enters the spring season ranked No. 120 in the nation. Emge chalked up victories over Auburn?s sixth-ranked Gabor Zoltan Pelva and 45th-ranked David Canudas of Southern Mississippi in the fall.

The UK men enter the spring with a No. 13 team ranking. The Cats were most recently ranked No. 14 in the final 2004-05 team rankings released last June.

The Cats kick off 2005 Friday at the SEC Fall Classic in New Orleans and the National Collegiate Tennis Classic in Palm Springs, Calif.