BOLIVAR, MO – The Nebraska Kearney tennis team started its 2023-24 season at the Southwest Baptist Invitational this past weekend (Sept. 8-9) in Bolivar, Mo.
This was the return of UNK men’s tennis as the program was stopped after the 2017-18 season. The roster includes six freshmen and three transfers.
The SBU Invite featured “A” and “B” singles draws as well as a doubles draw and there were championship and consolation brackets in each. The competition included SBU, Northwest Missouri and Drury (Mo.).
A veteran women’s squad racked up 19 wins with senior Melisa Becerra (Colombia) and junior Narindra Ranaivo (Madagascar) going 3-0 in doubles. They bested a pair from Drury, 8-7 (7-1), in the finals. In singles, Becerra and senior Jazmin Zamorano (Mexico) both went 3-0 in the “A” draw to reach the finals where they shared the trophy.
Next, Ranaivo bounced back from an 11-9 third-set loss in her opening round match to reach the “A” consoles finals before withdrawing. Finally, junior Masha Hatouka (Belarus) and freshman Fabiana Gamboa (Venezuela) both reached the “B” singles adjusted finals and shared the crown. They each had to win the third sets in their semi matches to advance.
The men were placed by freshman Jip Mens (The Netherlands) who went 3-0 in the “B” singles draw and won the title as his opponent had to withdraw due to injury. He reached the finals thanks to a 10-7 third-set result in the semis. Freshman Maksym Kulish (Ukraine) had a singles victory with the doubles pair of freshman Ahmed Abdelaziz (Egypt) and freshman Jakub Strzelecki (Poland) winning their first match by an 8-6 score.
The men head to the ITA Central Regional Sept. 15-17 in Topeka with the women having three duals this weekend in Pueblo, Colo.
