No. 14 Bulldogs finish 2nd, earn national tourney berth
PERKINSTON — No. 14 Mississippi Gulf Coast is headed to the NJCAA tournament for the third straight year and fourth time in five years after finishing second at the MACJC/Region 23 Tournament, which finished Saturday at the MGCCC Tennis Complex.
Travis Bell (Fr, Jackson/Calloway) and Reid Cudd (Fr, Wiggins/Stone) claimed singles titles for the Bulldogs, who finished with 28 points. Meridian won the state and region title with 28, and Jones County finished third with 17.
"Travis Bell beat Jason Pimenta, the first time he'd lost in two years." Gulf Coast coach Gary Bourgeois said "Travis is finally getting back to that level he was at when he left juniors, when he was a world-class junior player."
Bell knocked off Meridian's previously unbeaten No. 1 singles player 6-2, 6-2.
Reid Cudd blew through the field at No. 5 singles, winning the title 6-1, 6-0 over Meridian's Noah James. He lost only six games in three matches.
"Reid has had a tremendous season," Bourgeois said. "He parlayed that into a win in the tournament. He was never really challenged in the tournament. He dominated the matches a really played well."
The Bulldogs' bid for a state championship lost steam in the semifinals when they were unable to get enough players through to the final day.
"We lost some key matches Friday," Bourgeois said. "We lost after winning the first set. We reexamined that, we addressed it and I think we'll be ready for nationals."
The national tournament will be held May 15-19 in Plano, Texas. Gulf Coast will be making its 21st appearance.
For more information on MGCCC's 10 intercollegiate athletic teams, follow @MGCCCAthletics on Twitter and BulldogLIVE on Facebook, and go to mgcccbulldogs.com.
