Men's Tennis Team Claims Victory at Jackson State Tournament

The Choctaws were the overall champions at the Tiger's home courts.

Assistant Coach Brady McDaniel (left) and Head Coach Michael Ward (right) received the men’s overall championship on behalf of the team.

Mississippi College’s tennis teams competed in an individual tournament at Jackson State University over the weekend, which included players from North Alabama, Delta State, and Jackson State. The Choctaws entered twelve men and six women into the tournament.

Individual match results were added up at the end of the tournament to determine an overall champion and individual champions. While North Alabama took the women’s championship, Mississippi College’s men’s team won the men’s championship, sweeping all four of the men’s tournament brackets. 

Matches started at 9 a.m. on Friday. Semifinals and finals were played Saturday, with matches lasting until 3 p.m. Singles players were assigned to one of three different flights, A, B, or C, for the tournament. The flights were divided by strength. Meanwhile, doubles players all played in one bracket.

The men’s doubles semifinal consisted of only Choctaw athletes. Rafeal Sabio and Alex Blanchard won the doubles bracket 9-7 over fellow teammates Joe Jarvis and Alvaro Saint Martin.

Doubles runners up Jarvis (left) and Saint Martin (right) placed second in their bracket.

The same went for the singles Flight A semifinal, pitting Saint Martin, Jarvis, Blanchard, and Sabio against one another. Sabio and Blanchard met in the Flight A finals with Blanchard taking the title 7-5, 6-1.

Blanchard (left) and Sabio (right) with their awards for the tournament.

The Choctaws also won Flight B. Sergio Ramirez, a freshman from Jerez de la Frontera, Spain, beat Jackson State player Ching Chang Chiu 6-4, 6-4 in the finals. Another player from Mississippi College, Antoine Nivault, won the Flight B consolation.

Ramirez received the first place trophy for Flight B singles.

Senior Matías Ballatore triumphed over Jackson State player 6-4, 7-6 (5) in the Flight C finals match. He competed against fellow Argentinian from Jackson State, Federick Pickenstainer, 6-4, 7-6 (5) in the final men’s match of the day.

Ballatore triumphed over his opponents for first place in Flight C singles.

The Mississippi College women’s team struggled to place this weekend, but they did win two consolations. Fernanda Cota won the Flight A consolation and the doubles consolation alongside her three-year partner, Elyangelica Alas.

Alas (left) and Cota (right) with their consolation medals.

Both teams will wrap up their fall season in Montgomery, Alabama on November 3-5 with their fall regional tournament.