Singles Lineup Pushes Kentucky to 5-2 Upset Over No. 20 Michigan State

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Thanks to wins on five of six singles courts, Kentucky (3-0, 0-0 SEC) earned its first ranked victory of the 2026 season, defeating No. 20 Michigan State (0-1, 0-0 B1G) in a 5-2 contest. With the victory, the Wildcats are undefeated in their last 30 matches at the Hilary J. Boone Tennis Complex.

Kentucky was able to avenge last season’s defeat to the Spartans in East Lansing by the same score line, as Nicolas Arseneault, Eli Stephenson, Jack Loutit, Jaden Weekes, and Charlelie Cosnet all earned singles points for the Wildcats.

The match began with a tight doubles session, with all three courts coming down to the final games. Kentucky struck first blood at No. 3, with Cosnet and Martin Breysach earning their first ranked victory of the season. The Wildcat duo recovered from a 3-1 deficit to win five of the final six games against No. 76 David Saye and Mitchell Sheldon.

The final two courts saw steady play, with the serving team holding in 23 of the 24 combined service games. Michigan State was able to claim the only break at court No. 2, with Ozan Baris and Matthew Forbes breaking Weekes and Arseneault in the 12th and final game for a 7-5 win. At court No. 1, No. 69 Loutit and Stephenson matched up with No. 14 Taym Alazmeh and Danial Rakhmatullayev and traded 12 consecutive holds of serve. The Wildcat pair of All-Americans held two match points in the 12th game but were unable to convert. In the tiebreak, Loutit and Stephenson held leads of 4-0 and 5-3, but were once again unable to seal the deal.

Michigan State continued to seize momentum after gaining the 1-0 advantage, claiming early breaks on three of the first four singles courts. No. 19 Stephenson was the only Wildcat able to race in front, winning five of his first six games to cruise to a 6-3 opening set. The Louisville native would repeat the same score line in the second frame, evening the match at one with his team-leading 13th win of the 2025-26 campaign.

The Spartans would respond quickly, as No. 3 Forbes claimed a pair of tight 6-4 sets off of Antoine Ghibaudo at No. 1. Forbes opened the match with a break of serve and held for the remainder of the opening set. In the second, the two players would trade holds until the seventh game, with Forbes finding the deciding break once again. Ghibaudo had four looks at break points in the subsequent game but was unable to draw the match level, allowing the MSU All-American to claim the 6-4, 6-4 victory.

The match reached its turning point at court No. 2, as freshman Nicolas Arseneault earned a statement comeback win to even the dual at 2-2. The highly touted freshman from Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada delivered a 2-6, 7-5, 6-3 upset over No. 14 Baris in just his second collegiate dual match. Ranked as the No. 5 newcomer in college tennis by the ITA, Arseneault was able to survive a difficult opening set where he lost the first four games of the match. In the second, the two players traded holds for 11 games, with Arseneault finally finishing off the set with a break in game No. 12. In the third, Baris would break Arseneault in the opening game, but the Wildcat freshman was able to rattle off five of the next six games to take a 5-2 lead. After a Baris hold, Arseneault was able serve out the match at love to take his first career ranked victory over the three-time All-American, 2024 B1G Player of the Year, and 2024-25 NCAA Singles Runner-Up.

Minutes later, No. 26 Loutit was able to give Kentucky its first lead of the dual with a 7-5, 4-6, 6-3 victory over No. 103 Saye at court No. 4. Trailing by an early break, Loutit rattled off the final four games of the opening set to claim the first frame. Saye raced out to a 4-1 lead in the second, a deficit in which the Kiwi was unable to overcome. In the deciding frame, the All-American Wildcat was able to jump in front to a 5-1 advantage, serving out his fifth ranked win of the 2025-26 season on his second attempt to give the Cats a 3-2 lead.

Cosnet delivered the clinching victory at No. 6 singles, taking down Sheldon, 6-0, 7-5. The senior from Le Mans, France dominated the first frame and did not drop his serve once during the match. As the second set waned, Cosnet was able to put the pressure on in his return games, forcing a first match point at a deciding point deuce at 5-4. Unable to convert, Cosnet held and forced Sheldon to serve for a tiebreaker. Opening up a 15-40 lead in the game, the 2024 SEC Tournament MVP finally clinched the victory for the Cats on his third match point.

The two teams played out the remaining match, allowing Weekes to take down Rakhmatullayev in straight sets, 6-4, 6-3.

Kentucky will hit the road next week, traveling to New York for ITA Kickoff Weekend. Hosted by Columbia, the Cats will open against Florida at 11 a.m. ET on Friday, January 23. On Saturday, January 24, Kentucky will either face the host Lions or Illinois, depending on the results of Friday’s matches. Kentucky will return home the following week, hosting Louisville on Friday, January 30 and Duke on Sunday, February 1. All home matches are held at the Hilary J. Boone Tennis Complex and admission is free to the public.

For the latest on UK Men’s Tennis, follow the Wildcats on X and Instagram at @UKMensTennis.

Kentucky vs. No. 20 Michigan State

Doubles Results

1. No. 14 Alazmeh/Rahmatullayev (MSU) def. No. 69 Stephenson/Loutit (UK) 7-6 (5)
2. Baris/Forbes (MSU) def. N. Arseneault/Weekes (UK) 7-5
3. Breysach/Cosnet (UK) def. No. 76 Saye/Sheldon (MSU) 6-4

Order of finish: 3, 2, 1

Singles Results

1. No. 3 Matthew Forbes (MSU) def. Antoine Ghibaudo (UK) 6-4, 6-4
2. Nicolas Arseneault (UK) def. No. 14 Ozan Baris (MSU) 2-6, 7-5, 6-3
3. No. 19 Eli Stephenson (UK) def. Taym Alazmeh (MSU) 6-3, 6-3
4. No. 26 Jack Loutit (UK) def. No. 103 Davis Saye (MSU) 7-5, 4-6, 6-3
5. Jaden Weekes (UK) def. Daniel Rahmatullayev (MSU) 6-4, 6-3
6. Charlelie Cosnet (UK) def. Mitchell Sheldon (MSU) 6-0, 7-5

Order of finish: 3, 1, 2, 4, 6, 5