2013 Tennis
“It’s good to get another player out of Tupelo High School,” said Johnson. “It’s been solid program for years and I feel like Drew will continue that line of good players that we’ve had in the past come out of Tupelo.”
The postseason awards keep rolling in for the Itawamba Community College tennis teams as the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) announced their final National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) rankings for the 2012-13 tennis seasons.
“Academics are our top priority at ICC,” Ball-Williamson said. “We want all of our teams to be successful and have great seasons, but more importantly we want our student-athletes to be successful in life and everything they do after ICC and a great education plays a big part in making that happen.”
"We are well-known for our outstanding athletic programs here at ICC and a large part of that success can be traced back to our coaches stressing the importance of excellence in the classroom," said Ball-Williamson. "When a student-athlete does what it takes to perform at a high level in the classroom that same type of hard work and dedication shows in their respective sports."
The Itawamba Community College men’s tennis team finished up their season with a Top 25 finish in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) DI Tennis National Tournament at the Collin Tennis Facilities in Plano, Texas.
No. 6 Jordan Trice wins the Indians' lone individual single championship with a 6-2, 3-6, 6-4 win over Grant Bell of Gulf Coast as ICC finishes second place and qualifies for the NJCAA Region 23 Tournament.
Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College holds a two-point lead over Itawamba 26-24 heading into Championship Saturday with Hinds (14), Jones (12) and Holmes (11) battling it out for third place.
Results from the opening round of the MACJC State Tennis Tournament held at Rob Leake City Park in Tupelo
“We’ve got to learn from this loss and keep moving forward to get better as the season continues,†Johnson said. “There is a lot of season left and that means a lot more chances to keep getting better.â€
“This was a good win for us,†said ICC head coach Paul Johnson. “Jones has a very good program that is always in the mix for the state championship, but this is going to be a very tough weekend playing teams that will make a run at this year’s championship on back-to-back days.â€