Tuscaloosa, Ala. ? The No. 30 Kentucky men?s tennis team dropped its quarterfinals match Friday at the Southeastern Conference Tournament 4-2 to upset-minded Mississippi State in Tuscaloosa, Ala. The contest between the fourth-seeded Wildcats and the 12th-seeded Bulldogs was delayed over an hour by rain and resumed indoors at the UA Tennis Complex. The victory for No. 62 MSU was its second-consecutive over a higher-seeded opponent in as many days. MSU defeated No. 20 LSU in its first-round match on Thursday.
Kentucky (16-9, 7-5 SEC) gained the early 1-0 lead over MSU (6-13, 3-10 SEC) by claiming the doubles point. The team of senior Nate Emge and freshman Bruno Agostinelli captured UK?s first victory of the day at the No. 2 position by beating the Bulldogs? Philippe Frayssinoux and Pierre Mouillon 8-3. MSU forced the decisive third set when Florent Girod and Josh Irey defeated junior Greg Johnstone and freshman Kenny Hodge 8-6 at the No. 3 hole. Senior Alex Hume and sophomore Marcus Sundh clinched the point for the Wildcats with an 8-4 win over MSU?s Ivan Bjelica and Jose-Carlos Pinto.
In singles action, Mississippi State jumped ahead 2-1 by claiming victory at the No. 2 and 3 spots in the lineup. All-SEC second team selection Mouillon turned back SEC Freshman of the Year Agostinelli 6-4, 6-4 while Carlos Pinto defeated No. 121 Nate Emge 6-2, 6-4.
Kentucky tied the match at 2-2 when 51st-ranked Hume defeated No. 80 Bjelica at the top spot in the lineup. The Alexandria, Va. native showed why he was named first team All-SEC by sweeping MSU?s top player 6-4, 7-5 and in the process tying teammate Sundh for the team lead in wins with 29.
Sundh, a native of Stockholm, Sweden, lost a three-set contest in his attempt to put UK up 3-2. Sundh won the first set 6-2 before dropping the next two sets 7-6, 6-4 against Frayssinoux at the No. 4 position.
Mississippi State went on to clinch the match when Eric Lim swept Hodge at the No. 6 position 6-4, 6-3.
The Cats will now await the NCAA Tournament selection show on Wed., May 3. The show will start at approximately 8:30 EDT on ESPNEWS. Fans can check ukathletics.com for the latest UK tennis information throughout the postseason.
No. 62 MSU def. No. 30 UK 4-2
Doubles competition:
1. Alex Hume/Marcus Sundh (KEN) def. Ivan Bjelica/Jose-Carlos Pinto (MSU) 8-4
2. Nate Emge/Bruno Agostinelli (KEN) def. Philippe Frayssinoux/Pierre Mouillon (MSU) 8-3
3. Florent Girod/Josh Irey (MSU) def. Greg Johnstone/Kenny Hodge (KEN) 8-6
Singles competition:
1. #51 Alex Hume (KEN) def. #80 Ivan Bjelica (MSU) 6-4, 7-5
2. Pierre Mouillon (MSU) def. #73 Bruno Agostinelli (KEN) 6-4, 6-4
3. Jose-Carlos Pinto (MSU) def. Nate Emge (KEN) 6-2, 6-4
4. Philippe Frayssinoux (MSU) def. Marcus Sundh (KEN) 2-6, 7-6, 6-4
5. Carey Rubin (KEN) vs. Florent Girod (MSU) 6-1, 3-6, unfinished
6. Eric Lim (MSU) def. Kenny Hodge (KEN) 6-4, 6-3
