Feb. 1, 2012
LEXINGTON, Ky. – University of Kentucky men’s tennis senior Eric Quigley has been named the Co-Southeastern Conference Player of the Week after an impressive week of tennis where he broke the school record for career singles wins, the league office announced Wednesday.
“Eric Quigley is the type of student-athlete that our program is all about,” UK head coach Dennis Emery said. “We are really proud of what he has accomplished and excited about what our team can accomplish now that we are in dual-match season. We are condiment that our team can be very special this year and I know, as one of our team leaders and co-captains, that Eric is focused on helping our team achieve those goals.”
The senior entered the week needing two singles wins to become the all-time winningest singles player in school history. Quigley tied the record with win 144 against Indiana before breaking the record with a straight-sets win at No. 1 singles in the Eastern Kentucky match.
The native of Pewee Valley, Ky., currently holds a 147-44 career record, passing former UK All-American Paul Varga for first all-time in career singles wins at Kentucky. Varga, who played from 1982-85, ended his career with a 144-80 record and has held the title as the winningest singles player in school history for over 27 years.
Quigley, who is ranked fifth in the nation in singles, went 4-0 in singles play throughout the week, helping Kentucky defeat three top-60 ranked teams in No. 22 Tulsa, No. 29 Indiana and No. 57 North Carolina State. Quigley’s fourth win came against in-state foe Eastern Kentucky. In doubles action, Quigley went 2-1 with sophomore Panav Jha, helping Kentucky win the doubles point over Indiana and NC State.
So far this season, Quigley is 31-5 in singles action, including deep runs into some of the best tennis tournaments in the nation. During the fall, Quigley earned a berth into the Intercollegiate Tennis Association All-American Championships where he won the singles consolation title. The win would punch the senior’s ticket to the United State Tennis Association/ITA National Indoor Championships, where he would defeat three ranked players before falling to a top-three ranked player in the semifinals. Quigley also advanced to the finals of the USTA/ITA Ohio Valley Regional Indoor Championships and the Southern Intercollegiate. Most recently, Quigley advanced to the quarterfinals of the Southeastern Conference Coaches’ Indoor Championships. The UK star is 6-0 this year in dual matches.
As a team, the Wildcats are 6-0 this season in dual matches, including four wins over teams ranked in the top 60 in the nation. Kentucky’s 4-1 win over Tulsa on Saturday punched UK’s ticket to the National Indoor Team Championships for the third-consecutive season. The national team event will be held from Feb. 17-20 at the Boar’s Head Tennis Club in Charlottesville, Va.
UK will continue its dual-match slate Sunday with a doubleheader against Pepperdine at Noon and Abilene Christian at 6 p.m. ET. The Wildcats’ contest against Pepperdine will be at the Hilary J. Boone Tennis Complex, while the dual match with Abilene Christian will be played at the Lexington Tennis Club.
For more information on the Kentucky men’s tennis team, follow “UKmenstennis” on Twitter and “University of Kentucky men’s tennis team” on Facebook.
