No. 19 Kentucky Holds On for 4-3 Win Over Duke
LEXINGTON, Ky. – No. 19 Kentucky (9-0) continued its perfect start to the season, holding on for a 4-3 victory over Duke (2-4) on Sunday at Hilary J. Boone Indoor Tennis Center.
“Today was a real team win,” said assistant coach Matthew Gordon. “Credit to Duke, they never went away and definitely made it hard for us. We still know we have a lot of things to improve upon, but this team we have here is tough and has a lot of heart. The boys deserved the win today.”
Wildcats César Bourgois and Gabriel Diallo earned their second doubles win over a nationally ranked pair this season, improving to 7-0 as a duo overall. Bourgois and Diallo beat 55th-ranked Sean Sculley and Garrett Johns 6-1 on the first court, propelling Kentucky to its ninth consecutive doubles point to open the spring.
Diallo rode that momentum into singles play, where the 6-foot-7 sophomore claimed the first singles point with a 6-2, 7-5 victory over Edu Guell on court two. No. 45 Liam Draxl followed shortly after with a 7-6 (7-0), 6-2 win over Johns in the No. 1 spot, giving Kentucky a 3-0 lead over the Blue Devils.
Once Bourgois and No. 123 Joshua Lapadat fell on courts four and three, respectively, freshman Yasha Zemel secured the match-clinching point with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Andrew Dale from the fifth slot. No. 114 Alexandre LeBlanc fell on court six after the teams agreed to play out the final matchup.
Following its third win over an opponent from the Atlantic Coast Conference, Kentucky is set for its first neutral-court test in a monumental matchup versus No. 1 USC (6-0) on Wednesday at 1 p.m. ET in Champaign, Illinois.
For the latest on the Kentucky men’s tennis team, follow @UKMensTennis on Twitter and Facebook, @kentuckymenstennis on Instagram, and on the web at UKAthletics.com.
#19 Kentucky 4, Duke 3
Singles
1.#45 Liam Draxl (UK) def. Garrett Johns (DU) 7-6 (7-0), 6-2
2.Gabriel Diallo (UK) def. Edu Guell (DU) 6-2, 7-5
3.Sean Sculley (DU) def. #123 Joshua Lapadat (UK) 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-5)
4.Andrew Zhang (DU) def. César Bourgois (UK) 4-6, 6-3, 6-4
5.Yasha Zemel (UK) def. Andrew Dale (DU) 6-3, 6-4
6.Faris Khan (DU) def. #114 Alexandre LeBlanc (UK) 3-6, 6-3, 6-4
Doubles
1.Gabriel Diallo/César Bourgois (UK) def. #55 Sean Sculley/Garrett Johns (DU) 6-1
2.Alexandre LeBlanc/Liam Draxl (UK) def. Edu Guell/Andrew Zhang (DU) 6-4
3.Luca Keist/Faris Khan (DU) def. Yasha Zemel/Ying-Ze Chen (UK) 6-1
Order of finish: Doubles (1,3,2); Singles (2,1,4,3,5,6)
