Kentucky Women’s Tennis Escapes Cooling Temperatures for Alabama’s Fall Invite
LEXINGTON, Ky. – One week ahead of the Kentucky Invite, three Wildcats will represent Kentucky women’s tennis in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, at the 31st annual Roberta Alison Fall Classic on Oct. 26-28.
Sophomore McKenzie Moorhead, junior Anastasia Tkachenko and sophomore Brianna Tulloch will escape the low temperatures in Lexington for three days of tennis on 24 outdoor courts (six indoor courts) at the Alabama Tennis Stadium. Competition is set for 10 a.m. ET Friday through Sunday and is subject to change in the chance of inclement weather. A condensed schedule can be found below.
In substitution of live scoring, live streaming will be available for main courts one through six at ua_ftp.sidearmsports.com/custompages/livestats/tennis/tennis-streams.html.
The 2018 Roberta Alison Fall Classic will stick to its routine format, featuring eight singles flights and eight doubles flights. The flights are grouped by the strength of each player to cater to competitive matches for each individual.
The fall event guarantees each player three matches in their respective discipline.
Traditional scoring will be followed for the singles matches – 2 out of 3 sets, no advantage scoring. Doubles flights will follow an eight-game pro set, no advantage scoring.
Twenty-one teams highlight the draws, including Air Force, Alabama, Clemson, DePaul, East Carolina, Indiana, Kansas, Kennesaw State, Kentucky, Lewis University, Memphis, Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Samford, South Alabama, South Florida, UAB, UT Martin, Tulane, Troy, Western Michigan and Wisconsin.
Moorhead, Tkachenko and Tulloch are each competing as singles. In addition, Tulloch and Tkachenko will compete as a team in doubles. For up-to-date information on flight selections and scores, follow @UKWomensTennis on Twitter.
A native of Grand Rapids, Michigan, Moorhead is competing in her first group of tournaments as a Wildcat, this fall. The sophomore commenced her collegiate career in the Ohio Valley Regional Championships earlier this month. In her singles flight, she was defeated in the second round. Paired with Tulloch in the doubles discipline, the pair crept into the quarterfinals before falling to a couple of IUPUI opponents.
Tkachenko transferred to Kentucky after spending her first year at Wyoming. Like Moorhead, the junior competed in the Ohio Valley Regional Championships in her Wildcat debut. She snagged her first singles win in a consolation of 32 (6-0, 6-3). Paired with sister Diana Tkachenko, the couple recorded a doubles win in the main draw (8-3), before falling in the second round.
Tulloch joined the Wildcats as a three-star recruit out of Boca Raton, Florida. The sophomore was brought on in January after graduating from Florida Virtual High School early. She saw action quick, competing in the second round of the 2018 Southeastern Conference Championships and the 2018 NCAA First Round.
Condensed schedule
Friday, October 26:
10 a.m. – Doubles
Following – Singles
Following lunch – Resume singles
Saturday, October 27:
10 a.m. – Final doubles
Following lunch – Final singles
Sunday, October 28:
Reserved for delayed matches
For more on Kentucky women’s tennis, follow @UKWomensTennis on Twitter and Instagram, Kentucky Women’s Tennis on Facebook, or on the web at UKathletics.com.
