Men's Tennis

Diallo, currently ranked No. 135 in the ATP Rankings, brings experience to the Davis Cup team, having already played in five ties during his young professional career. At just 22 years old, Diallo holds a record of 2-3 in these matches, including a significant victory over Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti last year, who was ranked within the top 20 at the time. During his successful tenure at Kentucky, Diallo boasted an impressive overall singles record of 65-26 and was a three-time ITA All-American. He was named to the All-SEC First Team Selection twice and was also honored with a spot on the All-SEC Tournament Team in 2022. Diallo reached a career-high ITA ranking of No. 2 prior to the 2022 fall season and made it to the quarterfinal round at the NCAA Singles Championship in the same year.

Head coach Rodrigo da Silva expressed his pride in his team’s resilience, stating, “I am so proud of how the guys bounced back from yesterday. They played with a lot of energy, and they competed very hard. The schedule does not get any easier, so we need to work hard and stay focused.”

Head coach Rodrigo da Silva expressed his satisfaction with the team’s performance, stating, “It’s great to start the season with two wins. I’m really proud of the guys and how they competed, especially the freshmen who were playing in their first matches today. Hopefully, we can build on today’s success and continue our momentum into the upcoming matches.”

The Cardinals will kick off their season with a doubleheader at the Bass-Rudd Tennis Center on Wednesday. They will face Xavier at noon and Bellarmine at 5 p.m. ET. Louisville has a perfect record against both teams, with historic success against them dating back to the early days of the program.

Lapadat has proven himself to be a consistent winner during his time at Kentucky. He boasts an impressive 64-12 singles record in dual matches, as well as a 36-23 doubles record. The London, Ontario native was even named the 2023 SEC Tournament MVP after helping Kentucky secure their second conference tournament title in program history last year. In addition to this accolade, Lapadat was also honored as a First-Team All-SEC selection, building on his Second Team recognition from the 2022 season.

Louisville will kick off their season at home with two matches on January 17. They will first take on regional rivals Xavier in a highly anticipated showdown, followed by a crosstown matchup against Bellarmine.

Head coach Rodrigo da Silva expressed his excitement about the new signing, stating, “We are super excited to add Enrique to our team this year. He has been playing and competing at the highest level, and he will bring a lot of experience to our roster.”

In the past two seasons, Kentucky has qualified for indoor nationals and reached the semis in 2023.

With Draxl and Ayeni’s achievements this year, Kentucky now has a total of 52 All-American selections.

Despite the loss, Rodrigues and Salle had an impressive season and became the second All-American doubles team in the program’s history.