No. 18 Kentucky looks to pick up its sixth-consecutive victory Sunday when the Cats play host to No. 69 Alabama at UK?s Boone Tennis Complex. The match is set for 1 p.m. EDT in Lexington. Live scoring updates will be available at ukathletics.com.
Kentucky (14-6, 4-3) heads into Sunday?s match on a bit of a hot streak, as the Cats have won five-consecutive matches, three of which were against SEC opponents. UK is coming off of a convincing 5-2 win Friday evening over Auburn at the Boone Indoor Tennis Center.
Senior All-American Jesse Witten, the nation?s fourth-ranked student-athlete, remains on pace to become UK?s first four-time singles All-American. His 6-1 SEC record at the first singles position puts him atop the list of contenders for SEC Player of the Year. Witten has won six-consecutive matches and 12 of his last 13 singles contests to put him at 31-5 for the season. Witten and fellow senior Tigran Martirosyan, who comprise the ITA?s 21st-ranked doubles tandem, figure to move up the doubles rankings after picking up an 8-5 win Friday over Auburn?s 10th-ranked pair of Gabor Zoltan Pelva and Alex Schweizer.
Junior Alex Hume has put together a solid stretch of tennis during the last several weeks and may well be on his way to an All-SEC selection. The Alexandria, Va., native has won eight-consecutive matches without surrendering a single set. He holds a 6-1 SEC singles record, which includes a 6-2, 6-1 win Friday over Auburn?s Nick Lane.
Alabama (7-11, 0-7) enters the match after suffering a 5-2 loss Friday at Vanderbilt. The Crimson Tide features the ITA?s 99th-ranked student-athlete, Luigi D?Agord. UK dealt Alabama a 6-1 defeat a season ago in Tuscaloosa.
SEC Standings ? each team has four conference matches remaining
Eastern Division SEC Overall Florida 7-0 14-4 Georgia 5-2 13-4 Tennessee 5-2 10-4 South Carolina 4-3 15-6 Kentucky 4-3 14-6 Vanderbilt 2-5 10-7 Western Division SEC Overall Ole Miss 6-1 16-2 Mississippi State 6-1 11-4 LSU 1-6 13-7 Auburn 1-6 9-6 Arkansas 1-6 3-11 Alabama 0-7 7-11 Sunday?s SEC Matches Alabama at Kentucky Arkansas at Ole Miss Auburn at Vanderbilt Tennessee at Florida Georgia at South Carolina LSU at Mississippi State
