Men's Tennis Central: #3 Tennessee vs. Vanderbilt

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – After nearly a two-week layoff, the No. 3 Tennessee men's tennis team returns to action with a Friday afternoon contest with in-state foe and SEC rival, Vanderbilt. First serve from Barksdale Stadium is slated for 1 p.m. ET.

Live stats will be provided by UTsports.com and can be found here, while live video can be seen through Playsight which can be found here.

Attendance for home matches played outside at Barksdale Stadium, is limited to individuals on the student athlete and coach pass list for the 2021 dual season.

LAST TIME OUT
Last time out the Vols rolled past No. 28 Alabama, 6-1, in Tuscaloosa. After clinching a hard-fought-doubles point, graduate student Luca Wiedenmann, freshman Johannus Monday and senior Adam Walton rolled to straight-set victories to clinch match point at 4-1.

Wiedenmann, Monday and Walton conceded just 11 games across their six played sets, with Monday earning his 10th victory over a ranked opponent, knocking off No. 89 Edson Ortiz, 6-2, 6-2.

The victory was also the Vols 10th over a ranked opponent in 2021, giving them the most ranked wins in the country.

SCOUTING VANDERBILT
Friday's match will be the 73rd all-time meeting between the Vols and Commodores, with Tennessee holding a 56-16 edge in the series.

A victory would mark the first time the Vols have won back-to-back meetings between the in-state rivals since 2013, with the squads 2019 showdown being a dominant 5-2 victory in favor of UT.

Vanderbilt arrives in Knoxville with a 5-9 overall record and a tough 0-6 mark in conference action, having lost every SEC match by the score of 6-1, or 5-2.

VOLS IN THE RANKINGS
In the ITA's first computerized team, singles and doubles rankings of the year, the Vols have been tabbed as the nations third-best team, while placing six singles players on the top-125 list and a pair of doubles teams inside the top-80.

The full rankings and story can be found here.

THE FULL WEEK OFF JUST MEANS MORE
The last week was the Vols first extended layoff since the dual season began. When UT plays a match following four or more days of rest, the Orange & White are 7-1 with three shutouts and wins over three ranked opponents.

The Vols are also outscoring opponents 38-11 in those matches, with the closest victory being a 4-3 win over Auburn on March 12.

LUCA JUST KEEPS MOVING UP
A singles victory on Friday would mark the 109th win of Luca Wiedenmann's career, placing him in sole possession of eighth on UT's all-time singles wins list.

DON'T FORGET ABOUT WALTS
Senior Adam Walton currently sits at 89 career singles triumphs and is just 11 wins away from becoming the 11th Vol to eclipse 100 career singles victories.

Walton is in sole ownership of 18th on Tennessee's all-time wins list, with a victory on Friday moving him into a tie for 16th with VFL's Chris Mahony and Hunter Reese.

UP NEXT
Tennessee concludes its full SEC weekend with a home matchup with Kentucky on Sunday afternoon. First serve from Barksdale Stadium is slated for 1 p.m. ET.

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Players Mentioned

Johannus Monday

Adam Walton

Luca Wiedenmann

University of Tennessee Athletics