No. 19 Kentucky Opens SEC Tournament Against Ole Miss

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NASHVILLE – The No. 19 Kentucky women’s tennis team will begin action in the 2017 Southeastern Conference Tournament on Thursday at 7 p.m. ET in the second round of the tournament, taking on 12th-seeded Ole Miss at the Currey Tennis Center in Nashville.

The Wildcats (15-7, 7-6 SEC) earned the No. 5 seed in the tournament after posting their first seven-win SEC season since 2006. This season also marked the first time Kentucky has finished above .500 in conference play since 2007.

Thursday’s meeting will mark the 44th all-time between the two programs. In the regular season, UK earned a 4-2 victory over the Rebels in Lexington to take a 22-21 lead in the overall series. 

The winner of Thursday’s match will face fourth-seeded South Carolina on Friday at 7 p.m. 

Kentucky’s veteran duo of senior Sutjiadi and junior Mami Adachi is ranked No. 2 in the ITA rankings. They began 2017 as the nation’s top-ranked pair after winning their first national title at the UTSA/ITA National Intercollegiate Indoor Championships on Nov. 22. The twosome is 14-6 in the spring season, including a 7-4 mark in SEC play, all at No. 1 doubles.

The tandem of Akvile Paražinskaite and Chumney is also among the nation’s best, at No. 87 in the ITA rankings. Playing at No. 2 doubles, the pair owns a 7-3 record in SEC matches this season.

Individually, Sutjiadi is UK’s top-ranked singles player, holding the No. 20 singles spot. In the fall season, Sutjiadi won the singles title at the 2016 Ohio Valley Regional Championships. The senior owns an 8-8 record in dual matches this season and has defeated four ranked opponents all at No. 1 singles.

Ole Miss (14-12, 3-10 SEC) defeated 13th-seeded Missouri on Wednesday to advance to Thursday’s second-round matchup. As a team, the Rebels are ranked 29th in the nation.

The Rebels’ roster features two ranked singles players in No. 33 Arianne Hartono and No. 78 Natalie Suk. Ole Miss’ duo of Hartono/Alexa Bortles are ranked 47th.

For the latest on the Kentucky women’s tennis program,
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