Tuscaloosa, Ala. ? After being down 3-0, the 39th-ranked Kentucky men?s tennis team rallied to defeat No. 52 Alabama 4-3 Sunday in Tuscaloosa, Ala. Senior Alex Hume extended his career-best winning streak to 11 by taking the clinching match against the Crimson Tide.
The Cats (7-3, 2-0 SEC) got down 1-0 early to the Tide after getting swept in all three doubles matches.
The Tide then moved to the brink of victory by claiming wins at the No. 4 and 5 singles spots in the lineup.
With the Cats? facing defeat sophomore Marcus Sundh swept the Tide?s Andrew Felsenthal 7-5, 6-2, to begin Kentucky?s rally.
Senior Nate Emge picked up his 14th win of the year and got the Cats within 2-3 after sweeping the Tide?s Mathieu Thibaudeau 6-4, 6-4.
Freshman Bruno Agostinelli tied the match up at 3-3 with his victory over the Tide?s 58th-ranked Joseph Jung. The 63rd-ranked Agostinelli claimed the first set 6-1 before dropping the second 6-2. With the match on the line for Kentucky, Agostinelli came out in the third set and took down Jung 6-4.
Agostinelli?s victory set the stage for the reigning Southeastern Conference Player of the Week to clinch the match for UK. Hume extended his personal-best winning streak to 11 with a 7-6, 6-4, win over Alabama?s Javier Bes.
?Today was a great comeback from being down 3-0 for our team,? head coach Dennis Emery said. ?We showed a lot of heart in today?s match.?
?Alabama has a very good young team and I thought the difference in today?s match was our experience. They (Alabama) have a great group of talented young guys who can be very special in the future.?
The Cats will return to the courts on Wednesday when they open a four-match homestand against Indiana State and Murray State. The match against ISU is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. EST with the match against the Racers to follow at 6 p.m. EST. Fan can check ukathletics.com for live stats and a recap following the match.
#39 Kentucky 4, #52 Alabama 3
Singles competition:
1. #63 Bruno Agostinelli (UK) def. #58 Joseph Jung (ALA) 6-1, 2-6, 6-4
2. #100 Alex Hume (UK) def. Javier Bes (ALA) 7-6, 6-4
3. Nate Emge (UK) def. Mathieu Thibaudeau (ALA) 6-4, 6-4
4. Billy Mertz (ALA) def. Carey Rubin (UK) 6-2, 6-3
5. Dan Buikema (ALA) def. Greg Johnstone (UK) 6-4, 6-2
6. Marcus Sundh (UK) def. Andrew Felsenthal (ALA) 7-5, 6-2
Doubles competition:
1. Joseph Jung/Mathieu Thibaudeau (ALA) def. Alex Hume/Nate Emge (UK) 8-3
2. Sammy Struyf/Andrew Felsenthal (ALA) def. Marcus Sundh/Greg Johnstone (UK) 9-7
3. Billy Mertz/Javier Bes (ALA) def. Bruno Agostinelli/Kenny Hodge (UK) 8-6
