ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) - UCF men's tennis junior Korey Lovett begins play in the NCAA Singles Championships this week in Athens, Ga., at the Dan Magill Tennis Center. No. 42 Lovett will take on No. 66 Ryotaro Matsumura of Kentucky in the first round Wednesday at 1 p.m.
Lovett is one of four American Athletic Conference players to make the singles bracket. He has a 15-8 record on the top singles court this season. He started the season with a six-match winning streak and has recorded victories over multiple ranked opponents, including No. 28 Or Ram-Harel of Tulsa. Lovett was named to The American's All-Conference team following the regular season.
Matsumura enters the match with an 11-9 overall mark. The Fukui, Japan native earned a spot in the tournament as a late-addition alternate. The sophomore went 3-2 at No. 1 singles and 8-7 at No. 2 singles for Kentucky. Matsumura was put on the All-SEC Second Team for the second consecutive year this season. He recorded wins against two ranked opponents; No. 27 Josh Hager of Notre Dame and No. 38 Emil Reinberg of Georgia.
There will be live stats and live video available for fans to keep up with all the action.