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West Windsor,
N.J. - Ranked no. 3 in the country in Div. III, the men’s tennis
team is hoping to “get the job done” at the National Junior
College Athletic Association’s national tournament, to be held
May 10-14 in Plano, TX. According to Head Coach Marc Vecchiolla,
his players are “hungry and ready to make their mark.”
The Vikings
finished the regular season with a record of 10-2. In the Region
19 tournament, held at the Mercer County Tennis Center April 23-24,
the Vikings finished second with 16 points after Gloucester CC with
20 points. Brookdale finished third with 11 points.
Mercer’s
Region 19 winners included Jason Bielski at no. 2 singles; Matt
Pierson and Jason Bielski at no. 1 doubles; and Juan Ramirez and
Matt Romano at no. 3 doubles. Romano and Ramirez remained unbeaten
throughout the season with a record of 12-0.
MCCC’s Matt Pierson, the top seed at no. 1 singles, won in
three sets in the semi-final round against an opponent from Gloucester
who reached the national final last season. Pierson then fell to
Tom Wolski of Brookdale in the final. Juan Ramirez, at no. 4 singles,
made it to the final, as did no. 5 Ben Pinter. Numerous matches
went to third sets and tie-breakers.
While Vecchiolla
considers this team to be one of Mercer’s strongest ever, he
notes that the competition in the region has never been better.
In current ITA rankings, three of the top four teams in the country
are from Region 19: Gloucester in second place, Mercer in third
place, and Brookdale in fourth. Oxford College (GA), the 2009 national
champs, is ranked first.
““The
opportunity is there for them. They are prepared and confident going
in,” Vecchiolla says. “I honestly believe they are the
best team in a really strong region. They are going to go out there
and try to take home the prize.”
More photos
here.
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