Men’s Tennis Unable to Complete Upset Versus No. 5 Kentucky

OXFORD, Miss. – Although the Ole Miss men's tennis team showed valiant effort in its matchup with No. 5 Kentucky on Sunday, the Rebels were unable to complete the comeback, falling to the Wildcats, 4-2, at the Palmer/Salloum Tennis Center.

The Rebels (9-11, 2-7 SEC) showed that they are able to matchup with the top teams in the nation after giving the Wildcats (18-2, 9-0 SEC) a challenge, but Kentucky ultimately maintained its perfect conference record this season with a victory.

Coming out strong in doubles, John Hallquist Lithen and Carson Baker were able to solidify a perfect weekend as a tandem, after defeating their opponents, 6-4. This marks the duo's 14th win overall and a team-high 4th win in conference play this season.

Next, Isac Stromberg and Noah Schlagenhauf lost their doubles match on court three, 7-5. It all came down to court one where Nikola Slavic and Lukas Engelhardt fought to the end, but ultimately dropped the match to the 23rd-ranked Wildcat duo in the tiebreaker, 7-6 (7-3), allowing Kentucky to secure the doubles point.

Lithen continued his momentum from doubles into singles by running through Wildcat, Joshua Lapadat, in straight sets, 6-1, 6-2. The Gothenburg, Sweden native now holds the most conference wins this season on the Rebel lineup, stringing together six victories on court two.

After Baker fell in his singles match, 7-6 (7-1), 6-1, Slavic evened up the team score to 2-2 after an enormous ace to cap off the 7-6 (7-3), 6-2, victory over No. 36 Taha Baadi. The senior has now strung together four ranked wins this season as he competes against some of the most elite players on the primary court.

Kentucky repositioned themselves back into the driver's seat by taking court five, 7-6 (7-4), 6-2, and court three, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, to earn the two other points it needed for the win.

Up Next
The Rebels will now head into their final week of home tennis here in Oxford, hosting Georgia on April 5 at 3 p.m. CT before turning around and playing Tennessee on April 7 at 1 p.m. CT. Sunday's match against the Volunteers will serve as the Rebels' Senior Day.

Rebels on Social
For more information on Ole Miss Men's Tennis, follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissMTennis, on Facebook at OleMissMTennis and on Instagram at OleMissMTennis, follow Coach Hansson on Twitter at @TennisToby.

#5 Kentucky 4, #56 Ole Miss 2

Singles
1. #62 Nikola Slavic (OM) def. #36 Taha Baadi (UK) 7-6 (7-3), 6-2
2. J. Hallquist Lithen (OM) def. Joshua Lapadat (UK) 6-1, 6-2
3. Jaden Weekes (UK) def. Isac Stromberg (OM) 4-6, 6-3, 6-4
4. Lukas Engelhardt (OM) vs. Charlelie Cosnet (UK) 6-3, 3-6, 5-5, unfinished
5. Jack Loutit (UK) def. Noah Schlagenhauf (OM) 7-6 (7-4), 6-2
6. Christophe Clement (UK) def. Carson Baker (OM) 7-6 (7-1), 6-1

Doubles
1. #23 JJ Mercer/Joshua Lapadat (UK) def. #65 Nikola Slavic/Lukas Engelhardt (OM) 7-6 (7-3)
2. J. Hallquist Lithen/Carson Baker (OM) def. Taha Baadi/Jack Loutit (UK) 6-4
3. Jaden Weekes/Matt Rankin (UK) def. Isac Stromberg/Noah Schlagenhauf (OM) 7-5

Doubles (2,3,1); Singles (2,6,1,5,3)

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Team Stats

Players Mentioned

Carson Baker

Lukas Engelhardt

Noah Schlagenhauf

Nikola Slavic

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