April 20, 2008

ALEXANDRIA, Louisiana -- The 2008 SWAC Tennis Tournament concluded with the Lady Braves of Alcorn State University and the Jaguars of Southern University being crowned tournament winners. Both teams overcame deficits in their matches en route to their respective victories.

Southern will now await on NCAA Regional pairings for the 2008 NCAA Tournament.

WOMEN'S FINAL: Alcorn State d. Southern 4-3

Southern jumped out early winning the doubles point in pairings one and three. Southern then earned a 3-0 lead following singles by Megan Wiltz (pairing two) and Kathryn Curtis (pairing three). Alcorn State climbed back into contention after singles victories by Swetha Devaraj (pairing one), Katherine Hoepelman (pairing four) and Claudia Gonzales (pairing five).
The decisive point came as Sarah Peters gained a win in the sixth pairing with a 7-6, 1-6, 6-1 victory.

Alcorn State 4, Southern 3

Singles competition
1. DEVARAJ,Swetha (ALCW) def. Janelle Mosley (SUW) 7-5, 3-6, 6-1
2. Megan Wiltz (SUW) def. GUZMAN,Stefania (ALCW) 7-6, 6-4
3. Kathryn Curtis (SUW) def. CHIEN,Felicia (ALCW) 6-2, 6-1
4. HOEPELMAN,Katherine (ALCW) def. Bethlehem Workeneh (SUW) 6-4, 2-6, 6-2
5. GONZALES,Claudia (ALCW) def. Sydney Lartigue (SUW) 6-7, 6-2, 6-1
6. PETERS,Sarah (ALCW) def. Gabrielle Marshall (SUW) 7-6, 1-6, 6-1

Doubles competition
1. Janelle Mosley/Bethlehem Workeneh (SUW) def. HOEPELMAN,Katherine/GUZMAN,Stefania (ALCW) 8-5
2. Megan Wiltz/Kathryn Curtis (SUW) vs. DEVARAJ,Swetha/PETERS,Sarah (ALCW) 8-7, unfinished
3. Gabrielle Marshall /Sydney Lartigue (SUW) def. HOLDER,Avernelle/CHIEN,Felicia (ALCW) 8-3

All-Tournament Honors: Sarah Peters, Most Outstanding Player (Alcorn State); Samantha Cantu (Prairie View); Nolu Ndlabhu (Grambling State); Bethlehem Workeneh (Southern); Swetha Devaraj (Alcorn State); Paulina Vargas (Jackson State) and MeShala Johnson (Alabama A&M)

MEN'S FINAL: Southern d. Prairie View A&M 4-3

Southern claimed the doubles point winning pairings one and two. Prairie View opened singles action with Andy Narido (pairing one), Nicolas Bateman (pairing two) and Kutlwano Lephuthing (pairing three) picking up wins. Southern rebounded as Elvis Espinal (pairing four) and Kashwayne Nelson (pairing six) gained needed singles win. In the deciding singles match, Tyler Chin gained a three-set victory: 2-6, 7-5, 7-5.

Southern 4, Prairie View A&M 3

Singles competition
1. NARIDO,Andy (PVUM) def. Marlon Gichie (SUM) 7-5, 6-3
2. BATEMAN,Nicolas (PVUM) def. Bino Rasedisa (SUM) 6-1, 6-3
3. LEPHUTHING,Kutlwano (PVUM) def. Onkabetse Matong (SUM) 7-5, 6-2
4. Elvis Espinal (SUM) def. NYATOTI,Kudakwashe (PVUM) 6-3, 7-5
5. Tyler Chin (SUM) def. GARCIA,Jose (PVUM) 2-6, 7-5, 7-5
6. Kashwayne Nelson (SUM) def. HUBB,Jeremy (PVUM) 7-5, 6-3

Doubles competition
1. Tyler Chin/Marlon Gichie (SUM) def. NARIDO,Andy/BATEMAN,Nicolas (PVUM) 9-8
2. Bino Rasedisa/Onkabetse Matong (SUM) def. NYATOTI,Kudakwashe/LEPHUTHING,Kutlwano (PVUM) 9-7
3. GARCIA,Jose/HUBB,Jeremy (PVUM) def. Elvis Espinal/Kashwayne Nelson (SUM) 8-6

All-Tournament Honors: Elvis Espinal, Most Outstanding Player (Southern); Nicolas Bateman (Prairie View); Nicholas Rufyikiri (Grambling State); Tyler Chin (Southern); Sergio Salinas (Jackson State); Denys Ayleksyeyev (Alabama State) and Pushpendra Rajpurohit (Alcorn State).