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Wednesday, May 16, 2012

College Sports

Posted 2:20 am  Thursday, May 06, 2010


Clinched: TJC Netters Win Crown
TUCSON, Ariz. -- By winning every dual match against other two-year programs, the Tyler Junior College Apache Ladies proved they had the best team.

In dominating the national tournament, the Apache Ladies also proved they had the best individuals.

TJC won eight of nine semifinal matches Wednesday to clinch the college's 14th national championship in women's tennis. It's the 11th women's title for head coach John Peterson, who began his tenure in 1987, and the first since 2005.

"This is an awfully good team," Peterson said. "Wrapping it up makes (Thursday) anticlimactic. I hope they play as hard for themselves as they did for the team."

The Apache Ladies ran their point total to 44, while fellow Region XIV member Lee College remained in second place with 36 points.

Hillsborough (Fla.) is in third with 29.5, followed by Cowley (Kan.) and Florida State College tied for fourth with 23.5. Collin County Community College, located in Plano, is sixth with 23 points.

TJC lived up its No. 1 national ranking by winning the NJCAA Championship. The Apache Ladies took over the top spot in the April 16 poll after knocking off previous No. 1 Hillsborough, 6-3, on March 27.

"I think the tournament may have been won in March when we knocked off Hillsborough," Peterson said. "They were No. 1 all year and had the top two players in the nation."

Peterson wished that Hillsborough would have been at full strength for nationals, instead of showing up without two starters. But at the same time, Peterson said he's confident that TJC would have still come out on top.

All eight victories Wednesday were in straight sets. Sun Wen, a freshman from China; Antonia Kolovou, a freshman from Greece; and Robert E. Lee graduate Casey Bulls all lost just one game in the semifinals.

Wen and Kolovou won 6-0, 6-0 in doubles while sophomores Anna Zurek and Hagar Caro won 6-0, 6-2.

"We've only lost two sets in the tournament (in a loss at Flight 1 singles)," Peterson said. "All the girls have been dominant. Our freshman from Lubbock (Julie Bell) has been real (nervous) but she's hardly lost any games.

"Casey Bulls -- what a tournament she's had. Last year she was a nervous wreck at this tournament. This week she's been nails."

All eight players for TJC have earned some type of All-America status at the national tournament. Now all's that left is to win as many individual flights as possible, Peterson said.

"The demographics of scholarships have changed, and junior college tennis is not as strong overall," Peterson said. "But this team can play with virtually any team we've ever had."

Peterson said he got lucky with this team, getting a talented transfer from Kansas State and not even having his top three players on scholarship. Two of the players didn't start playing for TJC until January.

"It's a strong, deep team and they play really hard for each other and they care about each other a lot," Peterson said. "That doesn't happen every year."

--

Joe Buie

-- -- --

TJC Results

Semifinals

Singles

Flight 1 -- Mariya Slupska (2) lost to Olivia Howlett (3), Hillsborough (Fla.), 1-6, 7-5, 6-3.

Flight 2

-- Sun Wen (1) d. Jovana Vasic (3), St. Petersburg (Fla.), 6-0, 6-1.

Flight 3

-- Antonia Kolovou (1) d. Fatma Kuzu (6), Collin County, 6-0, 6-1.

Flight 4

-- Brooke Dennis (1) d. Bridgette Carrillo (3), Hillsborough (Fla.), 6-3, 6-1.

Flight 5

-- Casey Bulls (1) d. Simona Mrazova, ASA Institute (N.Y.), 6-0, 6-1.

Flight 6

-- Julie Bell (1) d. Kaycee Wood (4), Collin County, 6-3, 6-1.

Doubles

Flight 1

-- Slupska-Dennis (3) d. Nachell Proctor-Olivia Howlett (1), Hillsborough, 6-4, 6-2.

Flight 2 -- Wen-Kolovou (1) d. Jessica Montemayor-Brittney Laner, Cowley (Kan.), 6-0, 6-0.

Flight 3

-- Anna Zurek-Hagar Caro (2) d. Huong Huynh-Gina Stephenson, Lee, 6-0, 6-2.



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