No. 15 Indians swept by No. 22 Mississippi Gulf Coast

No. 15 Indians swept by No. 22 Mississippi Gulf Coast
Adam Gore/LetsGoICC.com

PERKINSTON, MS – The No. 15 Indians suffered a stunning loss after being swept 9-0 by No. 22 Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College on Saturday.

"Gulf Coast is going to be the team to beat this season," said ICC head coach Paul Johnson. "They are bringing back a lot of quality players off last season's team that had an outstanding season last year and now the guys know what it's going to take to go after another state championship this season."

No. 1 doubles Alexander Payol and Sean Robinson defeated Lucas Souza (Ilhabela, Brazil) and Matthew Peugh (Shannon) 8-3 with Nick Georgian and Lachlan Payol picked up another 8-3 win for Gulf Coast over James Jackson (Clarksdale) and Ambrose Wilson (Clarksdale) before completing the doubles sweep with an 8-1 win by No. 3 duo Grant Bell and Travis Burdick over Jamison Allred (Maben) and Caleb Ballard (Shannon).

"I think Gulf Coast wanted to make a statement today," commented Johnson. "They were able to get things going early against and did a great job of carrying their momentum into singles play."

Alexander Payol defeated No. 1 singles Souza 6-4; 6-2 and Robinson picked up the No. 2 victory with a 6-1; 6-1 win over Jackson. The No. 3 match went to Lachlan Payol 6-0; 6-1 over Wilson with Georgian picked up 6-2; 6-0 wins over Peugh in No. 4 play. No. 6 Burdick beat Ballard 6-0; 6-0 and Bell helped complete the sweep with a 6-3; 3-6 (10-3) victory in the No. 6 singles match.

"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."

The Indians will return to the courts against Gadsden State Community College on March 13 and Georgia Perimeter College on March 14.