Sept. 20, 2008
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The three University of Kentucky men’s tennis players at the Southern Intercollegiate Championships finished the first day of action undefeated in the tournament hosted by the University of Georgia, at the Dan Magill Tennis Complex in Athens Ga., Friday.
UK senior Bruno Agostinelli, the tournament’s No. 2 singles seed, went three sets in his round of 64 match. The Wildcat edged Andy Juc of Furman in the first set 7-5 before dropping the second set 6-2. Agostinelli bounced back in the decisive set clinching the match with a convincing 6-1 defeat. The Niagara Falls, N.Y., native who ranks No. 19 in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) pre-season top-125 singles rankings will face Middle Tennessee’s Morgan Richard Saturday in the round of 32. Should Agostinelli win, he would play his round-of-16 match later in the afternoon.
Agostinelli and doubles partner, sophomore Brad Cox, are the top seed overall in the division I doubles bracket. Together they rank 15th nationally in the ITA pre-season top 50 doubles rankings. In the pair’s first round match, the Wildcats thrashed their opponents Sanchez and Farlow from Mississippi State, 8-1 to advance to the round of 16. The duo faces a pairing from Georgia College and State University Saturday for the right to advance to the quarterfinals on Sunday.
Cox also advanced in singles play. In a round-of-64 match Cox started out slow dropping the first set 6-3 to Mississippi State’s Ryan Farlow. But the sophomore came back strong in the final two sets dropping just four games in a 6-1, 6-3 ending. Cox will battle Erick Sigueira in the round of 32 Saturday. Should Cox advance, he could face No. 6 seed Reid Carleton of Duke later in the afternoon in the final 16.
The final Wildcat in action this weekend is newcomer Alex Musialek. In his first collegiate match, Musialek battled Jordi Ballester of Jacksonville University. The UK freshman edged Ballester in the first set 7-5 for the advantage. In the second set, Musialek rolled to a 6-2 straight-set victory. The newcomer will face Bo Ladyman of Furman in the round of 32, Saturday. The No. 7 seed Lucas Jovita of South Florida, ranked No. 50 in the nation, could await Musialek in the round of 16 later in the afternoon.
Georgia’s Southern Intercollegiate Championships is entering its 41st year as the South’s oldest recurring tournament. The Championships are comprised of three singles divisions and two doubles divisions. The top two singles divisions play a 64-man draw, while the third division features a 60-man bracket. This year the tourney features 179 players from 32 schools. Play runs throughout this weekend in all of the draws with the finals contested on Monday.
Stay tuned to UKathletics.com for recaps of weekend tournament action.
