LEXINGTON, Ky. – The Kentucky Wildcats men’s tennis team picked up a pair of wins on Saturday afternoon, first sweeping the Murray State Racers, 6-0, before taking down the Dayton Flyers in another sweep, 6-0, at the Hilary J. Boone Tennis Complex.
The Wildcats looked impressive in the outing, with seven members of the team competing in the two matches. Due to travel needs for both Murray State and Dayton, the teams decided to forgo doubles play unless necessary for a tiebreaker.
The 49th-ranked Kentucky Wildcats move to 6-1 on the season following the victories. Murray State now stands at 1-4 on the season, while Dayton moves to 4-3 on the year.
The Wildcats hit the road in their next outing, heading to Chicago for a showdown with No. 21 Northwestern. First serve is set for 2 p.m.
In Kentucky’s matchup with Murray State, freshman Austin Hussey was the first to strike, earning a commanding 6-1, 6-0 victory on the third court over Srdjan Trosic. Next came sophomore Gus Benson with the Wildcats’ second straight set victory, 6-3, 6-1 over David Schrott at court No. 4. The freshman duo of Ryotaro Matsumura (6-1, 6-4) and Enzo Wallart (6-4, 6-1) clinched the match on the top and second court, respectively. Sophomore Jake Stefanik earned a 6-1, 6-1 win on court No. 5 before senior Kevin Lai’s 6-2, 6-1 win over Javier Villar secured the 6-0 team sweep.
The Wildcats clinched the second match within the first four matches as well. Sophomore William Bushamuka was the first to finish, making quick work of Dayton’s Bernardo Sanson with a 6-3, 6-0 win. Next to finish was Matsumura on the top court, downing Jordan Benjamin 6-2, 6-3. Hussey earned his second win of the day on the third court with a 6-2, 6-4 win, before Benson clinched the Wildcat victory on the fourth court, 7-6 (2), 6-2. Senior Charles Minc secured the 5-0 lead on the fifth court, taking it 7-6 (1), 6-2. Stefanik rounded out Kentucky’s play with a 6-0, 6-4 win on court No. 6.
Kentucky 6, Murray State 0
Singles (Order of Finish: 3, 4, 1, 2, 5, 6)
Ryotaro Matsumura (UK) def. Will True (MSU) 6-1, 6-4
Enzo Wallart (UK) def. Marcel Ueltzhoeffer (MSU) 6-4, 6-1
Austin Hussey (UK) def. Srdjan Trosic (MSU) 6-1, 6-0
Gus Benson (UK) def. David Schrott (MSU) 6-3, 6-1
Jake Stefanik (UK) def. David Hess (MSU) 6-1, 6-1
Kevin Lai (UK) def. Javier Villar (MSU) 6-2, 6-1
Kentucky 6, Dayton 0
Singles (Order of Finish: 2, 1, 3, 4, 5, 6)
Ryotaro Matsumura (UK) def. Jordan Benjamin (DAY) 6-2, 6-3
William Bushamuka (UK) def. Bernardo Sanson (DAY) 6-3, 6-0
Austin Hussey (UK) def. Carsten Fisher (DAY) 6-4, 6-2
Gus Benson (UK) def. Zach Berry (DAY) 7-6 (2), 6-2
Charles Minc (UK) def. Simon Jayarman (DAY) 7-6 (1), 6-2
Jake Stefanik (UK) def. Lorenzo Rollhauser (DAY) 6-0, 6-4