No. 23 Kentucky Heads to New York for ITA Kickoff Weekend
NEW YORK, N.Y. – No. 23 Kentucky (3-0, 0-0 SEC) is set to participate in the 2026 ITA Kickoff Weekend, traveling to New York City to play in the Columbia Regional. Hosted by the 13th-ranked Lions at the Milstein Family Tennis Center, the Cats will join the hosts, No. 25 Illinois, and (rv) Florida in the four-team pod, with the winner punching their ticket to the 2026 ITA Indoor National Championships in Dallas and Waco, Texas.
The Cats will open the weekend with an SEC showdown against Florida—although the match will not count towards conference standings. Play is set for a 11 a.m. first serve on Friday, January 23. Following the contest between the Wildcats and the Gators, Columbia and Illinois will square off a 3 p.m. ET to complete the opening round.
Saturday’s matches will be determined by Friday’s results, with the two losers playing a consolation match at 11 a.m. ET and the two winners playing the regional championship at 3 p.m. ET.
The Wildcats head to New York after claiming their first ranked win of the season, knocking off No. 20 Michigan State in Lexington. The Cats secured the 5-2 win after singles wins from No. 19 Eli Stephenson, No. 26 Jack Loutit, Nicolas Arseneault, Charlelie Cosnet, and Jaden Weekes. The result helped extend Kentucky’s home winning streak to 30 matches and boosted the Cats into the ITA Coaches Poll for the first time in 2026.
Kentucky is participating in ITA Kickoff Weekend for the fifth consecutive season, advancing to ITA Indoor Nationals in three of its previous four chances. Kentucky hosted the event from 2023-2025, last playing the event on the road in 2022. In that season, the Cats defeated Alabama and Mississippi State to win the Starkville Regional and advance to the program’s first ITA Indoor Nationals since 2013. In total, Kentucky has appeared in the prestigious midseason event 24 times.
ITA Kickoff Weekend is entering its 18th season of play, featuring 56 teams at 14 sites from around the United States. The 14 regional winners will join ITA Indoor Nationals co-hosts SMU and Baylor in the 16-team tournament, held from February 13-17.
Following its trip to the Big Apple, Kentucky will return home to host a pair of matches next weekend. The Cats will welcome in-state rival Louisville to the Boone at 5 p.m. ET on Friday, January 30 before hosting No. 18 Duke at Noon ET on Sunday, February 1. Admission to all home matches at the Hilary J. Boone Tennis Complex is free to the public.
For the latest on UK Men’s Tennis, follow the Wildcats on X and Instagram at @UKMensTennis.
