Kentucky senior Jesse Witten advanced to the NCAA men?s singles round of 16 for the first time in three seasons Thursday by scoring a 6-2, 6-2 win over Brown?s 86th-ranked Adil Shamasdin at Texas A&M?s Mitchell Tennis Center.

The third-seeded Witten advances to the round of 16 for the first time since the 2002 NCAA championships, which also were played at Texas A&M. The win extends his unbeaten streak to 18 matches, dating back to Mar. 6 when he suffered a defeat to Ole Miss? Catalin Gard.

Witten faces a difficult challenge Friday when he takes on crowd favorite No.14 Jerry Makowski of Texas A&M. Makowski advanced to the round of 16 by defeating Baylor?s 50th-ranked Lars Poerschke, 7-6 (3), 6-3. The match kicks off at 1 p.m. EDT in College Station. Live scoring for each NCAA singles match is available at aggieathletics.com.

NCAA Men?s Singles Championships ? College Station, Texas
Round of 32

(3) Jesse Witten (UK) def. No. 86 Adil Shamasdin (Brown) ? 6-2, 6-2

Friday, May 27 ? Singles Round of 16

(3) Jesse Witten (UK) vs. No. 14 Jerry Makowski (Texas A&M) ? 1 p.m. EDT