Kentucky Men’s Tennis (23-2, 12-0 SEC) advanced triumphantly at the 2024 Southeastern Conference Tournament semifinals, defeating LSU (16-13, 1-11 SEC), 4-0, on Saturday afternoon at the LSU Tennis Complex.
Kentucky kicked off doubles strong, securing an impressive ninth doubles point in a row. The Wildcats were led by Taha Baadi and Jack Loutit, playing in the second position, defeating the Tigers’ Ben Koch and Stefan Latinovic, 6-2. This is the duos ninth doubles victory together on the season. Kentucky’s ranked pair No. 7 Josh Lapadat and JJ Mercer clinched the doubles point for the Wildcats with a win over LSU’s ranked pair, No. 59 Julien Penzlin and Chen Dong, 6-3. The win was the Kentucky pair’s seventh-ranked victory together this season.
The Wildcats started the singles slot with a win on court two by No. 97 Lapadat as he defeated LSU’s Alessio Vasquez in straight sets, 6-3, 6-1. Baadi was victorious in the first position with a hard fought battle, ultimately coming out on top, 7-5, 6-2 over the Tiger’s Stefan Latinovic. Sophomore Charlelie Cosnet clinched the semifinal victory for the Cats with a straight-set win, 6-3, 6-4, over Julien Penzlin.
Kentucky will advance to the championship and continue play tomorrow against the No. 11 South Carolina Gamecocks. The match is projected for Sunday, April 21 at 2 p.m. ET in the LSU Tennis Complex. Championship matches will be broadcast live on SEC Network with all other streaming options, live stats, and tournament info found on the LSU Championship landing page.
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