No. 23 UK Women’s Tennis Hosts No. 6 South Carolina
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Two days after defeating Florida for the first time in 10 years to remain unbeaten in 10 home matches this season, the No. 23 University of Kentucky women’s tennis team will square off with the sixth-best team in the nation on Sunday, hosting South Carolina in a 1 p.m. first serve at the Hilary J. Boone Tennis Center.
UK has put together its best season since 2017, when the program began the year 15-3 before dropping its next four matches. Midway through the Southeastern Conference schedule, the Wildcats are 15-3 overall and 5-2 in the league. Tied with Texas A&M for fourth, UK has a difficult test ahead when they host No. 6 South Carolina (11-3, SEC 6-1), the lone second-place team in the conference.
The Gamecocks hold the all-time winning mark over the Wildcats, 23-17. The perineal program has defeated UK in six straight meetings. The last time Kentucky defeated South Carolina was in 2013 in a down-to-the-wire dual match, 4-3.
South Carolina boasts three players in the ITA/Oracle Top 125 singles poll, Nos. 7, 37 and 118. In addition, the Gamecocks have the No. 1 doubles pair in the country in Mia Horvit and Ingrid Gamarra Martins. The program has the No. 37 twosome in the country, too. In its last appearance, South Carolina handedly defeated No. 5 Vanderbilt in Nashville, 4-0.
The 35th-best singles player in the nation, senior Justina Mikulskyte, leads UK. Remarkably, the upperclassman upset Florida’s No. 16 Ida Jarlskog on Friday to become 5-1 against nationally-ranked foes this year. Paired with redshirt-junior Akvile Paražinskaite in doubles, the twosome is ranked No. 14 in the ITA/Oracle Top 80. They ride a five-match win streak and are undefeated against ranked opponents, 5-0.
Fans who wish to attend can enjoy free parking in any of the three E-lots adjacent to the tennis courts on the University of Kentucky campus one hour prior to the start of the matches. Parking structure No. 7 is also a free option for spectators all day.
Live scoring for Friday can be followed at sidearmstats.com/ukentucky/tennis/xlive.htm.
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.
