No. 19 Kentucky to Renew Rivalry with Louisville On Sunday
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Fresh off its first loss off the season, No. 19 Kentucky (9-1) looks to bounce back against in-state foe Louisville (4-0) in the Wildcats’ first true road test on Sunday at 3 p.m. ET.
Separated by less than 80 miles, the teams’ Valentine’s Day date will mark their first meeting since 2011. The Wildcats hold a 42-3-1 head-to-head advantage since 1925, including a perfect 26-0 mark since the Cardinals’ inaugural varsity men’s tennis season in 1982-83.
Kentucky’s first match away from home came last Wednesday, when the Cats were outlasted 4-3 by the No. 1 USC Trojans on a neutral court in Champaign, Illinois. Despite the team loss, the day was highlighted by a career performance from 45th-ranked singles player Liam Draxl, who earned his second win over a top-10 opponent in a 10-day span.
The 19-year-old sophomore bested 25-year-old senior Daniel Cukierman—who has been the nation’s top-ranked singles player since Nov. 13, 2019—by a 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 final. A week after his first Southeastern Conference Player of the Week selection, Draxl moved to 9-0 as Kentucky’s No. 1 singles competitor.
Sunday will mark Kentucky’s fourth contest against a challenger from the Atlantic Coast Conference, after having defeated Notre Dame (7-0), Virginia Tech (5-2) and Duke (4-3) at home.
Three of Louisville’s four wins have come against a common opponent with Kentucky, with back-to-back sweeps against Dayton (7-0, 4-0) on Jan. 27 and a sweep of Bellarmine (7-0) on Feb. 3. The Cardinals’ latest win came over Southeastern Conference adversary Auburn (4-1) on the road last Sunday.
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.
