Lexington, Ky. ? The No. 28 Kentucky women?s tennis team dropped its first Southeastern Conference match of the season when it fell 4-3 to 55th-ranked Alabama Sunday at the Hilary J. Boone Tennis Center.

Senior Danielle Petrisko and junior Caroline Winebrenner got the Cats (8-6, 1-1 SEC) off to a good start by capturing the first doubles match of the day with an 8-2 victory over the Tide?s Natalie McElveen and Sofia Ayala.

Alabama then claimed the point by taking the final two doubles matches. The Tide got their first win when Mari Muller and Andrea Brenes cut down UK?s Lara Maurer and Joelle Schwenk 8-6. The doubles point was won by Alabama when Robin Stephenson and Ashley Bentley outlasted the Cats? duo of Kim Coventry and Carolina Escamilla 9-8.

Alabama then went on to clinch the match by winning three of six singles matches. The Tide?s wins came at the 1-3 spots in the lineup. Bama?s Muller swept Kentucky?s Schwenk 7-4, 6-4, to help the Tide get their second point. Alabama won their third and fourth point in a pair of three set matches.

Playing at the No. 2 spot, Kentucky junior Maurer took the first set against Alabama?s 87th-ranked Bentley 7-6, before dropping the next two sets 6-3, 6-4.

At the No. 1 spot, UK junior Coventry also won her first set against No. 7 Stephenson 6-4. Coventry, the nation?s No. 22 player, dropped the second set 6-2. The Melbourne, Australia, native was then outlasted in the final set 7-5.

The Cats were able to secure impressive wins from the bottom three spots of their lineup.

At the No. 4 spot, Petrisko, a native of Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., made quick work of Alabama?s Shelley Godwin by sweeping the freshman 6-3, 6-2.

Playing at the No. 5 and 6 spots, Kentucky?s pair of freshmen, Escamilla and Jessica Giuggioli, each recorded their second SEC win in as many matches. Escamilla soundly defeated Alabama?s Brenes 6-1, 6-1, while Giuggioli recorded a 6-1, 6-3, victory over McElveen.

?We played great for a majority of the match,? head coach Carlos Drada said. ?Alabama showed a lot of strength and determination in winning this match. This match will definitely help us gain valuable experience for the rest of the season.?

Kentucky will embark on a four-match road trip beginning Friday at LSU. The match in Baton Rouge, La. is slated to begin at 5 p.m. EST. Fans can check ukathletics.com for a complete recap following the match.

No. 55 Alabama def. No. 28 UK 4-3

Doubles

1.Stephenson/Bentley (Bama) def. Coventry/Escamilla (UK) – 9-8
2.Muller/Brenes (Bama) def. Maurer/Schwenk (UK) – 8-6
3.Petrisko/Winebrenner(UK) def. McElveen/Ayala (Bama) – 8-2
Order of finish: 3, 2, 1

Singles

1.Robin Stephenson (Bama) def. Kim Coventry (UK) – 4-6, 6-2, 7-5
2.Ashley Bentley (Bama) def. Lara Maurer (UK) – 6-7, 6-3, 6-4
3.Mari Muller (Bama) def. Joelle Schwenk (UK) – 7-5, 6-4
4.Danielle Petrisko (UK) def. Shelley Godwin (Bama) – 6-3, 6-2
5.Carolina Escamilla (UK) def. Andrea Brenes (Bama) – 6-1, 6-1
6.Jessica Guiggioli (UK) def. Natalie McElveen (Bama) – 6-1, 6-3
Order of finish: 4, 3, 2 , 5, 6