The Jackson State women’s tennis team landed a national title in Atlanta this weekend, winning it all at the 24th annual HBCU National Championships.
Among the highlights, Isabella Benavides and Paula Corbalan each won first place in their respective singles draws. Benavides won five matches on the way to her title, with the final win coming against teammate Polina Georgieva. Corbalan claimed her individual title after winning four matches before facing teammate Victoria Linkovski in the final round.
In doubles, the teams of Linkovski and Tiara Alvarez and Daniella Tovar and Mariia Iordanova advanced to the finals in their respective draws.
The Lady Tigers’ final score of 122 was easily the best, with Alabama A&M finishing second with 71 points. Howard, Alabama State, Florida A&M, Xavier University of Louisiana, Alcorn State, Tennessee State, Bethune-Cookman, Clark-Atlanta, Bluefield, and Rust all competed as well.
On the men’s side, the Tigers finished in sixth place with 44 points. Winning it all was North Carolina Central, with Alabama State coming in second. Others who competed were Tennessee State, Xavier University of Louisiana, Alabama A&M, Howard, Alcorn State, Bluefield State, and Rust.
Highlights for Jackson State included Jhoan Vaquero advancing to the semifinals in singles and Federico Pickenstainer and Hung-Yu Chen placing second in doubles.
“It was an outstanding weekend for Jackson State tennis,” head coach Hernan Geria said. “Both our men’s and women’s teams competed with pride and delivered results we’re very pleased with. This performance will give us great momentum moving forward. I’m extremely proud of this group. Their effort, commitment, and dedication over the weekend were remarkable.”
Jackson State men’s and women’s teams will now prepare to compete in their final tournament of the fall in the SWAC Fall Tournament in Birmingham, Ala., on Oct. 4-5.
