No. 14 Lady Bulldogs get 3 more W’s
No. 14 Mississippi Gulf Coast got two more wins in the main draw on Day 2 of the NJCAA Division I Women's Tennis Championship in Waco, Texas.
Margarita Lopareva (Fr, Moscow, Russia/School No. 1101) rallied to upset eight-seed Kyning Tillinghast of Harford 1-6, 6-1, 6-4, and Megan Bankston and Tierney Holmes (Fr, Greenwood/Greenwood) beat Jones County's Kaitlyn Craig and Kaylee McLaurin 6-2, 6-1. They all advance to the semifinals.
"That's a really big win for Margarita," Gulf Coast coach Gary Bourgeois said. "Megan and Tierney knocked out Jones, which is a big win for us. That keeps them from going forward for more points."
Jenna Lyons (So, Pascagoula/Pascagoula) beat Iowa Central's Aimee Kell 8-0 in the consolation draw to make Gulf Coast's total haul for the day 2.5 points, bringing their total to 16.5. The Lady Bulldogs are in 10th place.
"Tomorrow we've got three tough matches," Bourgeois said. "The matches get tougher, mentally and physically. We've got to prepare mentally and physically tonight and get ready to go back to work tomorrow."
Gulf Coast has clinched its goal of finishing highest among MACJC teams.
"This is the deepest we've been in this tournament," Bourgeois said. "We're laying groundwork for next year's team and setting the bar high."
NJCAA Division I Women's Tennis Championship
Waco, Texas
Monday
Main draw
Doubles Round of 16
No. 2: Megan Bankston-Tierney Holmes (MGCCC) def. Kaitlyn Craig-Kaylee McLaurin (Jones County) 6-2, 6-1
No. 3: (4) Mathilde Lirzin-Cyrielle Peyroche (Abraham Baldwin) def. Jillianne Craft-Jenna Lyons (MGCCC) 6-1, 6-3
Singles Round of 16
No. 1: (1) Tamara Arnold (Tyler) def. Bianca Buie (MGCCC) 6-0, 6-0
No. 2: Margarita Lopareva (MGCCC) def. (8) Kyning Tillinghast (Harford) 1-6, 6-1, 6-4
No. 3: (5) Alena Macharova (Seward) def. Tierney Holmes (MGCCC) 6-0, 6-1
No. 4: Carolina Fabbri (North Central Texas) def. Megan Bankston (MGCCC) 6-4, 6-4
No. 6: (3) Lolita Kozina (Hillsborough) def. Jillianne Craft (MGCCC) 6-0, 6-1
Consolation Draw
Doubles
No. 1: Gyselle Daza-Carmen Manicea (Copiah-Lincoln) def. Bianca Buie-Margarita Lopareva (MGCCC) 8-2
Singles
No. 5: Jenna Lyons (MGCCC) def. Aimee Kell (Iowa Central) 8-0
Tuesday schedule
Main draw
Doubles semifinals
No. 2: Megan Bankston-Tierney Holmes (MGCCC) vs. (4) Kyra Akinnibi-Claudia Barboza (ASA Miami)
Singles semifinals
No. 2: Margarita Lopareva (MGCCC) vs. (2) Hana Kvapliova (Hillsborough)
Consolation draw
Singles
No. 5: Jenna Lyons (MGCCC) vs. Martina Borges (Seward)
For more information on MGCCC's 10 intercollegiate athletic teams, follow @MGCCCAthletics on Twitter and BulldogLIVE on Facebook, and go to mgcccbulldogs.com.
