Nik Scholtz returns the ball during a game earlier this year. Photo: Ignacio Murillo, The Daily Mississippian.
The Rebel Netters ended their stay at the Curry Tennis Center in Nashville Friday, as the Rebels fought hard against 12th-ranked Kentucky but ended up dropping the match 2-4.
The Rebels (15-13) will now have to wait a week to find out if the team qualified for the NCAA Championships. The announcement will be made next Tuesday, April 29 at 4 p.m.
The Rebels entered the match against Kentucky on a seven-match winning streak, with their last two wins coming against two ranked opponents in Texas A&M and Tennessee. The Rebels were not able to continue their momentum and were knocked out of the tournament by the Wildcats.
Ole Miss started off the match dropping the doubles point, losing the first two matches to start the match with a one-point deficit.
Junior Nik Scholtz continued his incredible season, beating 11th-ranked Tom Jomby from Kentucky in singles for the second time this season 7-6(5), 6-4. Sophomore Stefan Lindmark picked up the other point for the Rebels by defeating Beck Pennington of Kentucky 6-3, 7-5. Senior Johan Backstrom was unable to finish his match as he won the first set and was tied 6-6 in the second set. Junior William Kallberg won the first set in his match, but could not finish, losing the next two sets. Freshman Ricardo Jorge and sophomore Zach Wilder lost their matches, which gave Kentucky the victory and advanced it in the SEC tournament.
“I thought that we played well in singles, but they did too,” head coach Billy Chadwick said. “They are a very tough group and they are a very emotional group, and they deserved the victory.”
It has been a roller coaster season for the Rebels, but despite losing to Kentucky on Friday, the Rebels left the tournament on a high note by fighting for almost three and a half hours. They have a long wait ahead of them if they receive a spot in the NCAA tournament.
— Dylan Rubino
djrubino@go.olemiss.edu
