Sad news: Five-ranked Kentucky falls in the NCAA…..
At 27-3, the No. 5 Wildcats conclude their campaign.
At the Greenwood Tennis Center on Thursday afternoon, No. 4 TCU (26-4) defeated No. 5 Kentucky Men’s Tennis (27-3) in the NCAA quarterfinals.
In the doubles match, the Wildcats made a comeback, but they were unable to hold on, allowing TCU to take the early lead. Against the Horned Frogs’ combination of Jack Pinnington and Sebastian Gorzny, Taha Baadi and Jack Loutit were the first to complete, 3-6. Jaden Weekes and Eli Stephenson rallied from a 1-5 disadvantage on court three to tie the match at 4-5. In the end, they were unable to seal the deal, losing 4-6 to Duncan Chan and Lui Maxted of TCU.
In the singles session, TCU led the first set on all but court six, and the Cats were unable to reverse the tide. Kentucky would have to force a third set on three courts and hope for some miracle comeback to stay in Stillwater. Charlelie Cosnet, a sophomore, dropped to No. 78 Lui Maxted, 3-6, 1-6. Loutit lost his match to No. 77 Gorzny, 4-6, 4-6, with TCU leading a break on every court. Ultimately, Baadi lost 4-6, 3-6 to No. 13 Pinnington to end the tournament.
With its remarkable 27-3 overall record at the end of the season, Kentucky has won the fewest games in a season since 1970. In addition, the Wildcats won two championships: the SEC tournament championship and the overall regular season title. With their third straight appearance in the elite eight, Kentucky has made the most consecutive trips to the national quarterfinals in program history.
Mercer, Lapadat, and Baadi will stay in Stillwater from May 20–25 for the NCAA Singles and Doubles Championships. Baadi will play singles for the Wildcats, while Lapadat and Mercer are the No. 3 seeds in the doubles draw.
RESULTS
No. 5 Kentucky vs. No. 4 TCU
Pairs
No. 63 Fearnley/Vives (TCU) vs. No. 4 Lapadat/Mercer (UK): 4-5, incomplete
Baadi/Loutit (UK) vs. Pinnington/Gorzny (TCU): 6-3
Stephenson/Weekes (UK) vs. Chan/Maxted (TCU): 4-6
Individuals
No. 28 Taha Baadi (UK) lost to No. 13 Jack Pinnington (TCU) 6-4, 6-3.
Joshua Lapadat, ranked 80 (UK), against Jake Fearnley, ranked 7 (TCU): 3-6, 5-6, unfinished
Pedro Vives (TCU) at No. 73 vs. Jaden Weekes (UK): 5-7, 4-4, unfinished
Lui Maxted (TCU) of No. 78 defeated Charlelie Cosnet (UK) 6-3, 6-1.
77 No. Jack Loutit (UK) loses against Sebastian Gorzny (TCU) 6-4, 6-4.
Tomas Jirousek (TCU) vs. Eli Stephenson (UK): 7-5, 3-2, incomplete
Finish Order:
Doubles: 2, 3*
Individuals: 4, 5, 1*
READ MORE:
Jamie Vinson, a recruit for the class of 2024, will visit Kentucky Basketball
Mark Pope will soon complete the 2024–25 roster. Is Vinson going to be involved?
We have a fresh name to keep an eye on as the Kentucky Wildcats try to complete their 2024–25 roster—and it actually comes from the high school ranks.
Jamie Shaw of On3 reports that next Tuesday, 3-star center Jamie Vinson will make a visit to Kentucky.
Vinson is scheduled to visit Rutgers this weekend after visiting South Carolina.
Vinson, a player for the nationally renowned Oak Hill Academy, is a native of Texas. According to 247 Sports Composite, he is presently ranked 11th in the state of Texas, 41st among centers, and 239th overall in the class of 2024.
Given that Alvin Brooks III, the new assistant for Kentucky, actively recruited Texas during his tenure at Baylor, I’d be willing to wager that Texas is one of the reasons Kentucky is being considered.
Vinson enrolled at Vanderbilt in October of last year, but he later changed his mind after head coach Jerry Stackhouse was sacked. Other scholarship offers for the 6-foot-11, 210-pound center come from Ole Miss, Cal, Texas Tech, Tulsa, and Nevada, among other schools.
There are just two scholarship seats available for Kentucky, and it is hoped that Jaxson Robinson or Chaz Lanier will be able to fill one of them. However, Vinson is a legitimate big man who would provide Kentucky’s frontcourt with some extra depth; they are scoring guards.
Having another big guy who is near to seven feet would be excellent, as the only players on the roster who are taller than six feet seven are Brandon Garrison, Andrew Carr, and Amari Williams.
One to be wary of.
