Johnson County Community College
Press Release

College Information and Publications
913-469-8500
Julie Haas, Director, ext. 3120
Peggy Graham, Writer, ext. 3425
Tyler Cundith, Sports Information Director, ext. 3122

4/24/2006
Written by Tyler Cundith

JCCC men’s tennis earns trip to Nationals

OVERLAND PARK, KS -- The Johnson County Community College men’s tennis team were able to extend their season a little longer, finishing third at the Region VI Tennis Championships in Wichita, Kan., over the weekend. JCCC edged Cowley County by a half a point to earn the program its 23 NJCAA Tournament appearance, held May 15-19 in Plano, Texas. The Cavaliers did not have an individual singles champion, but did reach the finals in three of six singles brackets, but JCCC did win one doubles competition.

Freshman Quinton Peterson-Paul (Canada) reached the finals at the No. 1 spot, falling to Oliver Fabre of Barton County, 2-6, 5-7. Peterson-Paul reached the final match with a 7-6, 6-4 victory over Thiago Lins of Seward County. He opened with an easy 6-0, 6-0 win over Spencer Pozek of Hutchinson.

Sophomore Diego Mayorga (Columbia) reached the finals at No. 2 singles, falling to Vitor Lage of Barton County, 1-6, 6-7. He opened play with a 6-0, 6-0 win over Kyle Martin of Hutchinson, then downed Alejandro Martinez of Seward County in the semifinals 6-7, 6-0, 6-2.

Sophomore Tyler Shelley (Dodge City, Kan.) reached the finals at No. 5 singles, falling to Bruno Falcao of Seward County 2-6, 6-7. Shelley pounded out a hard-fought 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 win over Juan Ramos of Cowley County in the semifinals, setting up his finals match with Falcao.

Other key matches were turned in by sophomore Kyle Cumberland (Kansas City, Mo.) at No. 4 singles and sophomore David Scott (Blue Valley North) at No. 6 singles. Both players lost their semifinals matches, but rebounded to place third in their respective brackets. Cumberland downed Brian Cross of Cowley County 7-5, 4-6, 7-5 in his third-place match, and Scott shot down Kevin Ille of Barton County 6-0, 6-0 in his match.

In doubles play, Cumberland and Shelley won the No. 3 doubles bracket, downing Falcao and Josh Rollins in straight sets, 7-5, 6-1. They reached the finals with a straight set victory over Kevin Harper and Juan Ramos of Cowley County, 6-4, 6-1. The are the first player to earn All-Region VI accolades since the 2003 championship.

The No. 1 doubles team of Peterson-Paul and Mayorga lost in the semifinals, but rebounded to earn points by winning the third-place match, 6-3, 7-5 over Seward County. This match, along with JCCC victory at No. 3 doubles, proved key wins for JCCC’s quest to return to the National Tournament.