No. 13 MGCCC women clinch berth at nationals
No. 13 Mississippi Gulf Coast faced a challenge in its first match of the NJCAA Region 23 Women's Tennis Championship, and the Bulldogs answered in a big way.
Gulf Coast beat No. 20 East Central 5-3 to earn a spot in the region finals, and it also clinched a trip to next month's NJCAA Division I Women's Tennis Championship in Mesa, Ariz.
"We played a really good East Central team that had a lot of momentum after their win yesterday," Gulf Coast coach Sam Blackburn. "They were confident and motivated. We had to go in there and play some good tennis."
The Bulldogs (15-3) won two of three doubles matches to take control of the match. Krissy Georgieva (So., Epsom and Ewell High School/Sutton, England) and Kasey Kent (Fr., Ridgeland/Ridgeland) beat Natalia Beltran and Alejandra Vargas 8-2 at No. 1, and Tia Topps (So., Grenada/Grenada) and Ashley Chelette (Fr., Vancleave/Vancleave) won 8-1 over Madison Autry and Laila Sisson at No. 3.
Georgieva beat Beltran in straight sets at No. 1 singles, leaving the Bulldogs two points from the finals.
"Every court was very tough," Blackburn said. "It came down to just a couple points here and there. Anna Stringer had the most clutch of her college career. I'm super proud of her the way she fought and how she figured out how to win the match."
Stringer lost the first set of her No. 4 singles match 6-4 to Anna Moore before storming back force a third by winning the second 6-1. Then she had to eke out an 11-9 in the third-set tiebreak.
Courtney Gill wasn't the only opponent Chelette faced in her match. Mother Nature was looming over the match.
"Ashley was battling the possibility of rain postponing the match," Blackburn said. "She hurried up and finished the job and clinched the win. I super proud of her and the whole team. It was a tough match and they played hard."
Gulf Coast plays No. 12 Jones, which earned the right to host by winning the MACCC title. The Bulldogs were runners-up. First serves are scheduled for 10 a.m. Saturday.
Results
Team: Gulf Coast 5, East Central 3
Doubles
No. 1: Krissy Georgieva-Kasey Kent (GC) def. Natalia Beltran-Alejandra Vargas, 8-3
No. 2: Sarah Cline-Anna Moore (EC) def. Kaylen Bond-Anna Stringer, 8-5
No. 3: Tia Topps-Ashley Chelette (GC) def. Madison Autry-Laila Sisson, 8-1
Singles
No. 1: Georgieva (GC) def. Beltran, 6-4, 6-1
No. 2: Vargas (EC) def. Kent, 6-3, 6-4
No. 3: Cline (EC) def. Bond, 7-5, 6-4
No. 4: Stringer (GC) def. Anna Moore, 4-6, 6-1, 11-9
No. 6: Chelette (GC) def. Courtney Gill, 6-4, 6-2
NJCAA Region 23 Women's Tennis Championship
Ellisville, Miss.
Thursday, April 15
Quarterfinals
No. 4 Copiah-Lincoln 5, No. 5 Meridian 4
No. 6 East Central 5, No. 3 Hinds 4
Friday, April 16
Semifinals
No. 1 Jones 5, No. 4 Copiah-Lincoln 0
No. 2 Gulf Coast 5, No. 6 East Central 3
Saturday, April 17
Finals
No. 2 Gulf Coast vs. No. 1 Jones, 10 a.m.
Third-place match
No. 6 East Central vs. No. 4 Copiah-Lincoln, 10 a.m.
For more information on MGCCC's 10 intercollegiate athletic teams, follow @MGCCCBulldogs on Twitter and MGCCCBulldogs on Facebook, and go to mgcccbulldogs.com.
