Kentucky mens tennis defeats Auburn 4-3 to earn fourth consecutive SEC win
Kentucky Wildcats fifth year Alafia Ayeni hits the ball during the No. 5 Kentucky vs. No. 6 South Carolina mens tennis match on Thursday, March 2, 2023, at the Boone Tennis Complex in Lexington, Kentucky. South Carolina won 4-3. Photo by Samuel Colmar | Staff
March 19, 2023
No. 6 Kentucky mens tennis took down No. 22 Auburn 4-3 on the road this past Thursday to earn its fifth win over teams ranked within the ITA top 25.
The Wildcats opened the match winning the doubles points for the fourth consecutive time this season.
Liam Draxl and Jaden Weekes were the duo that earned the first win, taking a 6-3 victory on court three.
Alafia Ayeni and Taha Baadi next clinched the overall doubles win with a victory over Auburn’s Finn Murgett and Raul Dobai – a duo ranked 33rd in the country.
Draxl would then add another point to the scoreboard with a singles victory over Auburn’s No. 124 Tyler Stice. The triumph marked Draxl’s sixth win over a ranked opponent.
Auburn was able to make up some ground later as Baadi dropped his singles game against Jan Galka.
Yet, Kentucky would respond with No. 28 Ayeni winning his singles match and earning his fourth win in four matches this season.
Weekes, the reigning SEC Freshman of the Week, dominated his singles match, having never trailed in either of the last two sets.
The win marked not only his third consecutive singles win, but his sixth straight overall victory whether doubles or singles.
Weekes’ win clinched the victory for the Wildcats, securing a win in the first of a two-game road trip.
The Cats will face No. 66 Alabama on Saturday, March 18. The contest will start at 1 p.m. EST at the Alabama Tennis Stadium in Tuscaloosa.
