Gamecocks Fall to Kentucky

March 16, 2003

Lexington, KY – The No. 14 South Carolina men’s tennis team lost 4-3 in an SEC showdown against No. 9 Kentucky on Sunday. With the loss the Gamecocks fall to 11-2 (3-2 SEC).

The Wildcats jumped ahead early by sweeping USC in doubles competition. In singles, Seth Rose defeated No. 11 Jesse Witten by a score of 6-3, 7-6 at No. 1. Rose’s victory over Witten marked the second consecutive season that Rose has upset the Kentucky sophomore. Tom Eklund earned a victory at the No. 4 position, defeating Matt Emery 4-6, 7-5, 1-0. Geraldo Knorr earned the final Gamecock point at the No. 6 position, defeating Alex Hume 6-1, 6-4.

South Carolina will be on the road against No. 13 North Carolina on Thursday. The Gamecocks return home on March 26th to face Clemson at 2:00 p.m.

Match Results

Kentucky 4, USC 3

Doubles

1. Karim Benmansour/Matt Emery (UK) def. Marcus Westman/Tom Eklund (USC) 8-6

2. Rahim Esmail/Jesse Witten (UK) def. Ben Atkinson/Seth Rose (USC) 8-3

3. Alex Hume/Evan Austin (UK) def. Geraldo Knorr/Angelo Niculescu (USC) 8-6

Singles

1. Seth Rose (USC) def. Jesse Witten (UK) 6-3, 7-6

2. Evan Austin (UK) def. Angelo Niculescu (USC) 6-1, 6-0

3. Karim Benmansour (UK) def. Marcus Westman (USC) 6-1, 6-1

4. Tom Eklund (USC) def. Matt Emery (UK) 4-6, 7-5, 1-0 (tiebreaker)