LEXINGTON, Ky.?The No. 56 University of Kentucky men?s tennis team put up a good fight, but eventually fell 7-0, to the nation?s top ranked team in SEC-foe Georgia on a gorgeous night at the Hilary J. Boone Tennis Complex.
Junior Marcus Sundh paced the Wildcats (12-9, 2-5) as he opened his match with No. 11 Travis Helgeson by taking the first set 6-4 over one of the country?s top players. Sundh used a powerful serving game and rallied the home crowd behind him. Helgeson responded with a 6-2 win in the second set to force a third set. Sundh stayed tough, but Helgeson eventually prevailed with a 6-3 final set win.
?It?s hard to say you played well when you lose 7-0,? said Coach Dennis Emery. ?But, I thought we were really competitive in our top three spots. They?re just a lot more experienced at the bottom of the lineup than we are and I thought that was the difference in the match.?
Georgia jumped out to a 1-0 advantage after sweeping the doubles games. All three Kentucky doubles tandems forced tough games from the country?s No. 1, No. 10 and No. 59 doubles teams in slots one, two, and three, respectively. All three matches were decided by a score of 8-4.
The visiting Bulldogs pushed their lead to 3-0 by getting wins at No. 5 and No. 6, respectively. Freshman Jorge Jorge played one of his best matches in the Blue and White, but fell at No. 4 to Omerzel, 6-2, 6-3, where the match was clinched.
Sophomore Bruno Agostinelli went toe-to-toe with No. 1 John Isner. Agostinelli elected to serve first and saw the first set score go to five-all, before Isner rattled off two points to take the first set 7-5. Agostinelli began with the serve again in the second set and pushed ahead 1-0 to start the match. He kept the match close, forcing the 6-9 Isner to shuffle along the baseline. Isner eventually prevailed using a wicked serve and taking the game with a second set 6-4 win.
?I think we proved tonight that we can play with anybody in the country in the top of our lineup,? said Emery. ?The more we play the more confident we?ll get.?
Georgia notched the final score finishing the match with wins at No. 2 and No. 3. The Bulldogs? stretch their unbeaten streak to 18-0, and a perfect 7-0 record in conference action.
On Sunday, the Wildcats return to action when they play host to #22 Tennessee at the Hilary J. Boone Tennis Complex. Prior to the beginning of the match Kentucky will induct two new members into its Kentucky Men?s Tennis Hall of Fame, 1989 graduate and All-American Adam Malik and current Kentucky women?s head coach Carlos Drada, a singles finalist in 2000 at the NCAA Championships. First serve is slated for 1 p.m. EDT.
#1 Georgia 7, #56 Kentucky 0
Singles
1. #1 John Isner (UGA) def. #88 Bruno Agostinelli (UK) 7-5, 6-4
2. #9 Luis Flores (UGA) def. Peter Bjork (UK) 6-3, 6-2
3. #11 Travis Helgeson (UGA) def. Marcus Sundh (UK) 4-6, 6-2, 6-3
4. #31 Matic Omerzel (UGA) def. Jorge Jorge (UK) 6-2, 6-3
5. #86 Jamie Hunt (UGA) def. Kenny Hodge (UK) 6-0, 6-0
6. #79 Nate Schnugg (UGS) def. Roman Ogarkov (UK) 6-2, 6-1
Order of Finish: 5, 6, 4, 1, 2, 3
Doubles
1. #1 Isner/Flores (UGA) def. Agostinelli/Hodge (UK) 8-4
2. #10 Helgeson/Omerzel (UGA) def. Bjork/Sundh (UK) 8-4
3. #59 Hunt/Schnugg (UGA) def. Jorge/Ogarkov (UK) 8-4
Order of Finish: 1, 3, 2
