SUMTER, S.C. — The Northwest Mississippi Community College women’s tennis team posted a strong start at the NJCAA Division II Women’s Tennis National Championship at the Palmetto Tennis Center. The Rangers won five of six singles matches and swept their three doubles matches on the first day of competition.
Northwest’s singles players were particularly dominant, losing only seven games across their five victories. Meg Daves and Brooke Kicker did not lose a game in either set, while Laura Cámara Blanco and Ava McCain also won their first sets without dropping a game. The only singles loss came from Ángela Ortiz-Sánchez, who fell in a tight match against Coastal Alabama’s Nadja Walter. Ortiz-Sánchez had two break points but lost the first set and narrowly lost the second, according to the team.
Head coach Ryan Mounce said he was pleased with his team’s performance. “I thought we did what we were supposed to do. We got five of six girls through,” Mounce said. “Of course we’d love to get Angela through. She played a talented opponent, and we just didn’t get it done, but credit to her opponent.”
In doubles action, the Rangers continued their success. The highlight was the victory on the No. 1 court, where Cámara Blanco and Claudia Lopez Chaparro lost the first set but rallied to win the second 6-1 and the third 6-4. Cámara Blanco said that focusing on the final games helped her team clinch the match. “I was just thinking it was the last games. We have to lock in and focus,” she said.
The No. 2 doubles team of Daves and Ortiz-Sánchez won quickly, dropping only one game in two sets. The No. 3 duo of Kicker and McCain also secured a swift win, losing just one game in two sets. The team will continue its run in the tournament Tuesday, with singles main draw matches starting at 8 a.m. Central Time and doubles matches ongoing throughout the day.
Results from Monday’s matches include Ortiz-Sánchez’s loss to Walter, 7-5, 6-4; Cámara Blanco’s win over Arielle Tefiku; and Daves’s victory over Julia Rhodes. In doubles, the team of Cámara Blanco and Lopez Chaparro defeated Blais and Haque, while Daves and Ortiz-Sánchez topped Rhodes and Tefiku. Kicker and McCain also advanced with a win over Gloucester’s Barker and Summers.
