No. 13 Bulldogs pursue W’s in Plano
PERKINSTON — No. 13 Mississippi Gulf Coast hit the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex on Saturday looking to do big things at the NJCAA Division I Men's Tennis Championship, which starts Monday.
The tournament is being hosted by Collin College in Plano, Texas. It runs through Friday.
"I'm expecting our guys to make a lot of noise," Bulldogs coach Sam Blackburn said. "There's potential up and down the lineup in different areas for us to make some deep runs in the main draw and back draw. If we get a good draw, we get some confidence and start playing really good, anything is possible."
Gulf Coast finished an undefeated MACCC regular season to claim the state championship, then swept through the NJCAA Region 23 Tournament to grab another title.
Play will start Monday in six singles brackets and three doubles brackets. First-round winners will continue in the main draw, while the other half of the field will drop into the back draw. Players will continue to accumulate points toward the team total by winning matches, with the main draw matches worth twice as much.
Two Gulf Coast players earned All-MACCC honors this season: Wesley Fontaine (So., Biloxi/Biloxi) and Clay Fudge (Fr., Madison/Madison Central).
Fontaine is a third-year player after returning following last year's abbreviated COVID season. He went 16-3 in singles, losing only once in the MACCC. He started the year at No. 4, then moved up a spot without missing a beat.
"Wesley has been playing 1-doubles and 3-singles, really stepping up and playing like he's been doing it forever," Blackburn said. "It's his first year playing this high up. It's super impressive and he's held his own. He's really been a leader and a motivator for the whole team."
Fudge went 17-2 in singles, having started at No. 5 and bumping up to No. 4 at the same time Fontaine was elevated. He was undefeated in MACCC play.
"Clay coming in as a freshman and looking like a veteran, he just handles pressure super well," Blackburn said. "Playing with Pedro (Molero) at 2-doubles, he looks super solid day in and day out. I'm really impressed with him. I expect him to do good things this week."
Gulf Coast will be hoping to follow the footsteps of the Bulldogs' women's tennis team, which finished 12th at the national tournament earlier this month in Arizona. They were the highest-finishing MACCC team out there, and that's certainly a goal in Texas.
"Our goal is to finish top-15 at least," Blackburn said. "I think we can start creeping toward 10, 11. The women set a pretty high bar for what we can do at nationals. I think the guys will be looking to follow their lead. If they finished 12 like the girls did, it would be an amazing accomplishment."
For more information on MGCCC's 10 intercollegiate athletic teams, follow @MGCCCBulldogs on Twitter and MGCCCBulldogs on Facebook, and go to mgcccbulldogs.com.
