Kentucky Kernel -- January 31, 1997

<BODY BGCOLOR=#FFFFFF LINK=#0066ff ALINK=#0066ff VLINK=#660000> <BLOCKQUOTE>    <CENTER> <FONT SIZE=6> <B>Cats get tune-up for top SEC foes</B><P> </FONT> </CENTER> <FONT SIZE=4><B>By David Gorman</B><BR></FONT>Staff Writer <HR> This weekend the men's tennis team is looking to serve some Southeastern conference hospitality to their guests. <P> The Cats start the spring season with three dual matches at home. UK plays Morehead State, Western Kentucky and Miami (Ohio).The No. 18 Cats begin the season with plenty of fire power owning two of the Top 10 players in the country. UK's Cedric Kauffmann is No. 6 and Ludde Sundin is No. 5. <P> UK's three opponents are not ranked and do not compare to the teams they will go up against in the SEC. There are three teams in the SEC in the Top 5 and four other teams in the bottom 15. <P> Western is coming off a big win over Murray. Beating Murray for the first time in more than 30 years. <P> UK men's tennis coach Dennis Emery is keeping things in perspective. <P> "These first three dual matches will get us ready for the season," Emery said. "I'm looking for Ced and Ludde to provide us with leadership." <P> Kauffmann and Sundin led the Cats in the fall season. Kauffmann finished with a record of 7-2 and made it to the finals of the Rolex Intercollegiate Indoors. <P> "We have been working hard so far," Kauffmann said. "We expect to do well, but you can never underestimate your opponent." <P> Sundin had a 15-4 record and reached the semifinals of the Rolex Intercollegiate. <P> "We are definitely ready," Sundin said. "The team should get off the season to a good start with some wins." <P> Marcus Fluitt and Dan Spaner begin the season ranked 38th in the national doubles rankings. <P> Fluitt is in the top four in singles for the Cats. In the fall season he played outstanding but then caught mononucleosis. Fluitt has recovered and is anxious to get back into the swing of things. <P> "After I had mono in the fall, all I could think about was playing in the spring," Fluitt said. "These dual matches will be a good test for myself and the team." <P> On the road again <P> The women's tennis team travels to Chapel Hill to take on the Tar Heels of North Carolina this Friday at 1 p.m. <P> The women will take on Wake Forest 10 a.m. Saturday in Winston Salem. <P> "The UNC match is very important," said UK Coach Mark Guilbeau. <P> "If we win at UNC that would be a really big win. We'll take Saturday as it comes." <P>    <HR> <P> <CENTER> <FONT SIZE=5> [ <A HREF="welcome.html">Contents</A> | <a href="http://www.kykernel.com">Home</A> | <A HREF="/archive.html">Archives</A> | <A HREF="/feed.html">Feedback</A> ]<BR> </FONT> <P> <B>© Copyright 1997, Kernel Press Inc. All Rights Reserved</B><BR>  </BLOCKQUOTE> </BODY>