PROVO, Utah--After posting two wins in its first road trip of 2014, No. 45 BYU men’s tennis gears up for two competitive matches at the ITA Kick-Off Weekend with the first match versus No. 8 Kentucky on Friday at 1 p.m. EST in Lexington, Ky.
The Cougars (4-0) face the Wildcats (4-0) in the first day of competition. On Saturday they will play either No. 29 Notre Dame or No. 39 Minnesota in the championship or consolation match.
“We're feeling good at 4-0 for the season,” BYU head coach Brad Pearce said. “It hasn't been easy, but our guys are finding a way to win.”
Friday marks the first tough test for BYU this season. In the first road trip this season the team came away with a 4-3 win against No. 74 George Washington and a 5-2 win over a solid Navy team.
“We have a challenge ahead of us,” coach Pearce said. “We're excited about playing No. 8 Kentucky on their home courts, and it will be great to play either of the other two highly-ranked teams, Notre Dame or Minnesota. We'll be prepared to give Kentucky everything we have and see what happens for the next round.”
For a roster that has eight freshmen and only three returning players, the results have been solid.
Junior Francis Sargeant leads the team with an undefeated record in singles (4-0) and doubles matches (4-0) with freshman teammate Sterling Galli.
The newcomers are pulling their weight with Matthew Pearce, Juan Canales and Aidan Carrazedo each posting a 3-1 record. Pearce and fellow freshman Jacob Sullivan have also compiled a 3-1 doubles record through the first four matches.
The second day of competition continues Saturday with the consolation at 1 p.m. EST and the championship at 5 p.m. Live stats can be followed on the Kentucky website.