COLUMBIA, South Carolina – After two days of competitive tennis on the hard courts of the Columbia Tennis Center, the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference crowned two more champions for the 2014-2015 academic year.
In a pair of finals that featured Stillman College and Benedict College, it was the Benedict Tigers claiming the 2015 SIAC men's tennis championship while the Stillman Lady Tigers claimed their third consecutive SIAC Women's Tennis crown.
In the third-place contest in the women's bracket, Clark Atlanta defeated Tuskegee 5-0. The duo of Vonnick Boyogueno and DiAndrea Galloway won their second match of the weekend as they downed Reicia North and Kimberly Bowen 8-3. Tori Pradier and Avern Gumbs held off Navilla Paul and Cheryl Dixon 8-4 before the Lady Panthers picked up the doubles sweep when Vanessa Jean-Baptiste and Khadija Elder defeated Taylor Wilson and Kayla Triche 8-5. In singles action, Gumbs and Galloway earned straight-set sweeps of 6-0, 6-0 over Wilson and Dixson.
In the men's consolation, a seesaw battle saw Morehouse defeated Tuskegee 5-4. The Maroon Tigers earned two points in doubles action as Everette Reese and Steven Hill downed Oshane Trail and Andrew Knight 8-1 while Brandon Sanders and P.J. Stamps earned a 9-8 win over Michael Graham and Joseph Messam. In singles action, Trail defeated Reese 6-3, 6-1 while Tuskegee's Dominique Northecide defeated Sanders 6-1, 6-3. Morehouse earned three singles points as Hill downed Knight 6-3, 6-0; Jabez Beazer downed Graham 6-7, 6-3, 7-6 (8-6); and Stamps held off Messam 7-5, 6-3.
In the women's championship, Stillman defeated Benedict 5-1. The Lady Tigers from Tuscaloosa swept the doubles points. Veronika Kalugina and Maria Andreeva defeated Esther Zelaya and Daniella Rios 8-1 before Viktoria Izakova and Angela Corredor held off Kayla Flores and Belinda Camacho 8-6. In the final doubles match, Carolina Barabas and Nair Tolomeo defeated Juilet Campbell and Adrienne Milow 8-1. Benedict earned its lone singles point as Rios won via walkover when Corredor retired due to injury. Stillman responded when Andreeva blanked Campbell 6-0, 6-0 and Balada downed Milow 6-2, 6-3.
The men's championship saw Benedict dethrone two-time defending champion Stillman by a score of 5-2. Benedict earned a 2-1 lead after doubles play as Zibusiso Ndimande and Shane Latchman defeated Yonwaba Pupuma and Jose Pojasi 8-4 while Malek Selman and Juan Hernandez downed Edward Symonnett and A. Fernandez-Esteban 8-1. In singles action, Ndimande defeated Fernandez 6-2, 6-4 wwhile Justin Payton downed Pojasi 6-4, 6-3. Stillman earned another point when Pupuma earned his second singles win of the weekend with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Latchman. Hernandez then downed Symonnett 6-0, 6-1 to clinch the win for Benedict.
All-Tournament Awards
Women's Singles | Men's Singles | ||
Estel Balada | Stillman | Zibusiso Ndimande | Benedict |
Maria Andreeva | Stillman | Justin Payton | Benedict |
Daniella Rios | Benedict | Yonwaba Pupuma | Stillman |
Esther Zelaya | Benedict | Fernando Garcia | Stillman |
DiAndrea Galloway | Clark Atlanta | Dominique Northecide | Tuskegee |
Reicia North | Tuskeee | Steven Hill | Morehouse |
Women's Doubles | Men's Doubles | ||
Vonnick Boyogueno & | Clark Atlanta | Everette Reese & | Morehouse |
DiAndrea Galloway | Steven Hill | ||
Nair Tolomeo & | Stillman | Joan Sanson & | Stillman |
Carolina Barabas | Fernando Garcia | ||
Juilet Campbell & | Benedict | Malek Selmen & | Benedict |
Adrienne Milow | Juan Hernandez | ||
Women's Most Outstanding Performer | Men's Most Outstanding Performer | ||
Estel Balada | Stillman | Zibusiso Ndimande | Benedict |
Women's Most Outstanding Coach | Men's Most Outstanding Coach | ||
Will E. Riley | Stillman | Gary Taylor | Benedict |
Women's 3rd place finisher | Men's 3rd place finisher | ||
Clark Atlanta Lady Panthers | Morehouse Maroon Tigers | ||
Women's Tournament Runners-Up | Men's Tournament Runners-Up | ||
Benedict Lady Tigers | Stillman Tigers | ||
Women's Tournament Champion | Men's Tournament Champion | ||
Stillman Lady Tigers | Benedict Tigers |