History-making season continues as Mustangs win GPAC Tournament title 4-1
SOUTH SIOUX CITY, NEB. – A historic season for Morningside Men’s Tennis checked another box today as the Mustangs won their first-ever Great Plains Athletic Conference tournament title, sidestepping Midland, 4-1, to claim the conference’s automatic berth to the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Men’s Tennis National Championships.
SOUTH SIOUX CITY, NEB. – A historic season for Morningside Men's Tennis checked another box today as the Mustangs won their first-ever Great Plains Athletic Conference tournament title, sidestepping Midland, 4-1, to claim the conference's automatic berth to the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Men's Tennis National Championships.
The Mustangs found themselves behind early as Midland took the team doubles point. Winyou Asavaruangchai and Abhishek Mohapatra made sure it came down to the wire, though, as they took their doubles match, 6-3, to put Midland's victory in the best-of-three series in jeopardy.
As play moved to singles, Morningside dug deep, collecting four-straight victories to punch their ticket. Santiago Minetti was first across the finish line with a quick 6-1, 6-2 victory in the no. 2 spot. Joao Pedro Pierry Izoldi Costa was next in the book, winning the no. 6 match 6-1, 6-1.
Gustav Sjoberg had to recover from a 6-7 loss with an 8-10 tiebreaker, coming back with 6-3 and 6-2 wins in his remaining sets.
Ben Abdallah's match started on the right foot with a 6-4 victory, but looked as if momentum might have shifted as he fell 1-6 in set two. The senior buckled down, however, and came back to win his final set 6-4 to clinch the match, falling to the court as he scored his final point.
The Mustangs, for the first time in program history, head to the NAIA Men's Tennis National Championships, held May 14-18 in Mobile, Ala.
Doubles
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Benjamin Starman/Joren Stevens def. Mark Trenkle/Gustav Sjoberg 6-1
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Daniel Liebig/Boris Velasquez def. Santiago Minetti/Skander Ben Abdallah 6-3
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Winyou Asavaruangchai/Abhishek Mohapatra def. Vitor Goncalves/Arthur Hernandez 6-3
Order of finish: 1, 3, 2
Singles
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Benjamin Starman vs. Mark Trenkle 2-6, 7-5, 4-3
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Santiago Minetti def. Daniel Liebig 6-1, 6-2
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Skander Ben Abdallah def. Joren Stevens 6-4, 1-6, 6-4
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Gustav Sjoberg def. Vitor Goncalves 6-7 (8-10), 6-3, 6-2
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Mikhil Raja vs. Nathen Bitzer 6-0, 4-6, 2-2
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Joao Pedro Pierry Izoldi Costa def. Arthur Hernandez 6-1, 6-1
Order of finish: 2, 6, 4, 3