No. 18 Kentucky Falls to No. 21 Tennessee, 4-3
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Despite three singles wins, the No. 18 Kentucky men’s tennis team fell to No. 21 Tennessee, 4-3, on Friday night at the Goodfriend Tennis Center in Knoxville. UK fell to 14-9 and 7-4 in the Southeastern Conference while UT improved to 19-6 and 8-3 in the league.
Tennessee jumped out to an early lead after winning the doubles point. Austin Hussey and Will Bushamuka fell to Stodder/Walton, 6-2 and No. 36 Cesar Bourgois and Gus Benson lost 6-3 to No. 24 Touliatos and Valero to give UT the doubles point.
UT extended its lead to 2-0 when No. 9 Ryo Matsumura fell to No. 22 Timo Stodder, 6-4, 6-3. Matsumura is now 8-2 against nationally ranked opponents this season.
The Volunteers extended its lead to 3-0 when Austin Hussey fell to Preston Touliatos, 6-1, 7-5. Hussey is 9-9 this season.
Gus Benson grabbed the first point for UK. Benson beat Luca Wiedenmann, 7-5, 2-6, 6-3 to cut the Volunteer advantage to 3-1. Benson is 2-1 overall this year and 1-1 on the No. 6 court.
Kentucky scored again when Trey Yates beat Scott Jones, 7-6, 7-6. Yates is 13-5 this season and has won five-straight matches.
Tennessee clinched the win when Enzo Wallart was defeated by Adam Walton, 4-6, 6-4, 6-1. Wallart dropped to 13-6 this season.
No. 53 Will Bushamuka picked up UK’s final point after Tennessee clinched the match. Bushamuka beat Luis Valero in comeback fashion, 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7-4). Bushamuka improved to 9-6 overall and 8-1 on the No. 2 court.
UK will wrap up the regular season at Georgia on Sunday at 1 p.m.
Tennis Match Results
Kentucky vs Tennessee
Apr 13, 2018 at Knoxville, TN
(Goodfriend Tennis Center)
#21 Tennessee 4, #18 Kentucky 3
Singles competition
1. #22 Timo Stodder (UT) def. #9 Ryotaro Matsumura (UK) 6-4, 6-3
2. #53 Will Bushamuka (UK) def. Luis Valero (UT) 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7-4)
3. #112 Adam Walton (UT) def. Enzo Wallart (UK) 4-6, 6-4, 6-1
4. Trey Yates (UK) def. Scott Jones (UT) 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (7-4)
5. Preston Touliatos (UT) def. Austin Hussey (UK) 6-1, 7-5
6. Gus Benson (UK) def. Luca Wiedenmann (UT) 7-5, 2-6, 6-3
Doubles competition
1. #24 Preston Touliatos/Luis Valero (UT) def. #36 Cesar Bourgois/Gus Benson (UK) 6-3
2. Timo Stodder/Adam Walton (UT) def. Will Bushamuka/Austin Hussey (UK) 6-2
3. Andrew Rogers/Scott Jones (UT) vs. Ryotaro Matsumura/Enzo Wallart (UK) 3-3, unfinished
Match Notes:
Kentucky 14-9, 7-4 SEC; National ranking #18
Tennessee 19-6, 8-3 SEC; National ranking #21
Order of finish: Doubles (2,1); Singles (1,5,6,4,3,2)
For more information on the Kentucky men’s tennis team, follow @UKMensTennis on Twitter or Kentucky Men’s Tennis Team on Facebook.
