March 28, 2010
LEXINGTON, Ky. — After claiming the doubles point for the third consecutive match and scoring four singles points, the ninth-ranked University of Kentucky men’s tennis team secured a 5-2 victory over No. 37 Alabama on Sunday. The victory is the 500th for UK head coach Dennis Emery in his 28 seasons at Kentucky and the third straight for the Wildcats.
“This win is special for me because I love the University of Kentucky so much,” Emery said after Sunday’s match. “I have always felt blessed to be the coach at UK. To see former players like Cedric (Kauffmann), Bruno (Agostinelli) and Carlos (Drada) have so much fun being around UK means more to me than the wins because it means that they had a really positive experience here.”
Emery now holds a 500-320 record at Kentucky and an all-time record of 587-386 in 33 seasons as a head coach. In his 28 seasons at Kentucky, Emery has led 15 players to an amazing 29 All-America honors. The legendary coach sits on the top-10 wins list among active coaches and is second in NCAA Tournament berths among active coaches. Emery, a two-time National Coach of the Year finalist and two-time Southeastern Conference Coach of the Year, has led this year’s UK team to a top-10 ranking for seven consecutive weeks.
Kentucky (14-6, 4-2 SEC) gathered its first road win of the year against Alabama (8-10, 1-5 SEC), claiming the doubles point for the third straight match and the fifth time in the last six matches. The match started with the Crimson Tide winning at No. 3 doubles, but the Wildcats responded at No. 1 and 2 doubles. Junior Alberto Gonzalez and senior Alex Lambropoulos claimed their third straight doubles win with an 8-5 victory over Ricky Doverspike and Michael Thompson. The Wildcats clinched the doubles point when No. 15 sophomore Eric Quigley and junior Brad Cox won a back-and-forth battle at No. 1 doubles (9-8, 8-6) over Saketh Myneni and Michael Davis.
In singles action, Kentucky got wins from No. 37 sophomore Alex Musialek, Cox, Gonzalez and freshman Anthony Rossi. Musialek started the scoring for Kentucky by posting a 6-4, 6-1 straight-sets victory over Doverspike. UK would claim its third straight win of the season after getting straight-set wins from Rossi and Gonzalez and a thrilling three-set win from Cox, giving the Wildcats a 5-0 lead. The wins for Rossi and Gonzalez marked the third consecutive singles wins for each player.
“To get a road win in the SEC is huge for us,” Emery said. “Alabama has been very tough at home this season with three top-25 wins and losses to only Georgia and Tennessee. Coach Kauffmann did a great job with No. 1 doubles today. A huge part of our success this season is due to him and his efforts on the court. This was just a solid team effort today for us against a very good team.”
The Wildcats will return to the court this weekend when they host South Carolina on Friday at 4 p.m. ET and Florida on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET. Admission to both events is free and live stats will be available on ukathletics.com.
Tennis Match Results
March 28, 2010 at Tuscaloosa, Ala.
(University of Alabama Tennis Stadium)
No. 9 Kentucky 5, No. 37 Alabama 2
Singles competition
1. No. 47 Saketh Myneni (UA) def. No. 10 Eric Quigley (UK) 6-7 (5-7), 6-3, 1-0 (11-9)
2. No. 37 Alex Musialek (UK) def. Ricky Doverspike (UA) 6-4, 6-1
3. Brad Cox (UK) def. Jarryd Botha (UA) 6-3, 4-6, 6-1
4. Anthony Rossi (UK) def. Michael Thompson (UA) 6-0, 6-4
5. Alberto Gonzalez (UK) def. Houssam Yassine (UA) 6-4, 6-3
6. Ian Chadwell (UA) def. Graeme Dyce (UK) 2-6, 6-2, 6-2
Doubles competition
1. No. 15 Eric Quigley/Brad Cox (UK) def. Saketh Myneni/Michael Davis (UA) 9-8 (8-6)
2. Alberto Gonzalez/Alex Lambropoulos (UK) def. Ricky Doverspike/Michael Thompson (UA) 8-5
3. Jarryd Botha/Trey Walston (UA) def. Anthony Rossi/Alex Musialek (UK) 8-2
Match Notes:
Kentucky 14-6, 4-2 SEC; National ranking #9
Alabama 8-10, 1-5 SEC; National ranking #37
Order of finish: Doubles (3,2,1); Singles (2,4,5,3,6,1)
