No. 15 Men lose MACCC title to No. 12 Jones

PERKINSTON — No. 15 Mississippi Gulf Coast couldn't top No. 12 Jones on Friday, and the Bobcats clinched the MACCC title at the MGCCC Tennis Complex on Sophomore Day.

The Bulldogs lost three singles matches in three sets, falling 5-4.

"We could have easily won one or two of those, so it's a tough one," Gulf Coast coach Sam Blackburn said. "But that's how it goes. If we win all three, we win 7-2 and would win outright."

Gulf Coast lost the first meeting between the teams 6-3 in February in Ellisville. The Bulldogs needed to win by that margin to force the conference race to tiebreakers or get seven points to win the championship.

Kyle Bond (Fr., Wiggins/Stone) and Alex King (So., Ocean Springs/Ocean Springs) reversed the Bulldogs' loss at No. 3 doubles this time, winning 8-4.

Paul Gayk (Fr., Muelheim an der Ruhr, Germany/Berufskolleg Lehnerstrasse) won at No. 1 singles against Tomas Nader, turning around his loss the first time around.

"I think we proved to ourselves we can win," Blackburn said. "We showed that to them as well. I don't think they'll take us lightly, and we know we have the ability to do this. I think we'll be ready more than ever for the tournament. We fueled the fire today to get ready for the region tournament."

King, Clay Fudge (So., Madison/Madison Central), Pedro Molero (So., Maracaibo, Venezuela/U.E. Instituto Americano Joseph John Thomson) and Anderson Dulaney (So., Long Beach/Long Beach) were honored on Sophomore Day before their final match at Perk.

Jones will host the NJCAA Region 23 Tournament later this month in Ellisville. Gulf Coast plays an exhibition match against Point University on Monday before closing our MACCC regular-season play Tuesday at Southwest Mississippi.

Results

Team: Jones 5, Gulf Coast 4

Doubles

No. 1: Tomas Nader-Wallace Brewer (JC) def. Pedro Molero-Clay Fudge, 8-4

No. 2: Paul Gayk-Anderson Dulaney (GC) def. Ignacio Vanecek-Trey Hilton, 8-5

No. 3: Kyle Bond-Alex King (GC) def. Tanner Bevard-Jackson Peoples, 8-4

Singles

No. 1: Gayk (GC) def. Nader, 7-6, 6-3

No. 2: Brewer (JC) def. Fudge, 6-4, 4-6, 10-6

No. 3: Molero (GC) def. Vanecek, 6-3, 2-6, 10-8

No. 4: Dulaney (GC) def. Bevard, 6-0, 6-2

No. 5: Peoples (JC) def. Bond, 6-4, 3-6, 10-1

No. 6: Trey Hilton (JC) def. Alex King, 6-4, 6-2

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