No. 23 Kentucky Drops Opener at ITA Kickoff Weekend
NEW YORK, N.Y. – No. 23 Kentucky (3-1, 0-0 SEC) dropped its first contest of the season, falling 4-2 to (rv) Florida (2-0, 0-0 SEC) in the opening round of ITA Kickoff Weekend.
The Gators earned the doubles point and wins at courts No. 1, No. 4, and No. 6 in singles to clinch the match. No. 19 Eli Stephenson and Jaden Weekes each picked up singles points for the Cats.
For the second straight match, Kentucky dropped a tight doubles session on a tiebreaker on the final court. The Gators were the first to finish a match, picking up a 6-1 victory over Martin Breysach and Charlelie Cosnet on court No. 2. The Cats responded with a big win at court No. 1, as No. 69 Jack Loutit and Eli Stephenson defeated No. 5 Henry Jefferson and Tannapatt Nirundorn, 6-3.
Doubles would come down to court No. 3, where Nicolas Arseneault and Jaden Weekes would fall in a extended tiebreaker. The duo saw one match point at deuce in the 6-5 game, but a Florida ace pushed the match into the decider. The Kentucky pair was able to save three match points in the breaker but Florida ultimately converted its fourth and took a 1-0 lead in the match.
In singles, the two teams split the opening six sets. Florida was the first to strike, adding to their lead with a 6-3, 6-2 win on court No. 1.
No. 19 Stephenson continued his blistering start to the season, earning his seventh ranked win of 2025-26 to put his team on the board. The junior from Louisville breezed through a 6-3, 6-4 victory over No. 115 Jefferson to earn his team-leading 14th win of the season.
The Cats were able to tie the dual at 2-2 with a win from Weekes on court No. 5. The senior from Montreal defeated Kevin Edengren on an identical 6-3, 6-4 score line to extend his undefeated start to 2026.
The Gators would claim the final two points of the dual, with No. 26 Loutit falling 6-1, 6-4 at court No. 4 and Matt Rankin losing 4-6, 6-1, 6-0 on court No. 6. Freshman Nicolas Areseneault fought valiantly to extend his match at court No. 2, saving five match points and winning a second set tiebreaker before the match was ultimately left unfinished.
Kentucky will return to the courts tomorrow, taking on the loser of No. 13 Columbia and No. 25 Illinois at 11 a.m. ET.
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Kentucky vs. Florida
Doubles Results
- No. 69 Stephenson/Loutit (UK) def. No. 5 Jefferson/Nirundorn (UF) 6-3
- Ganesan/Ramos (UF) def. Breysach/Cosnet (UK) 6-1
- Claverie/Timini (UF) def. N. Arseneault/Weekes (UK) 7-6 (6)
Order of finish: 2, 1, 3
Singles Results
- Adhithya Ganesan (UF) def. Antoine Ghibaudo (UK) 6-3, 6-2
- Nicolas Arseneault (UK) vs. Lorenzo Claverie (UF) 3-6, 7-6 (4), 0-0 (uf)
- No. 19 Eli Stephenson (UK) def. No. 115 Henry Jefferson (UF) 6-3, 6-4
- Pablo Perez Ramos (UF) def. No. 26 Jack Loutit (UK) 6-1, 6-4
- Jaden Weekes (UK) def. Kevin Edengren (UF) 6-3, 6-4
- Andreas Timini (UF) def. Matt Rankin (UK) 4-6, 6-1, 6-0
Order of finish: 1, 3, 5, 4, 6
