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From Staff Reports

TUCSON, Ariz. — No flight championships.

No national championship.

The Tyler Junior College Apache Ladies lost in the finals of flights 2 and 4 singles, while Hillsborough (Fla.) Community College went 2-0 to capture the team title Thursday at the NJCAA Division I Women’s Tennis Championship.

Hillsborough finished with 45 points. TJC was second with 44 points, followed closely by Lee College (43), Abraham Baldwin (Ga.) (42), Collin County (39.5), North Central Texas (38) and Laredo (37).

Laredo and Lee matched Hillsborough with two flight championships.

For TJC, No. 2 seed Priscillia Villemond lost to No. 1 seed Jessica Mezo, 6-0, 6-0, at Flight 2.

“Priscillia was not in the match with Mezo,” said TJC head coach John Peterson. “Mezo was hitting a winner on virtually every ball. I felt going in that Mezo was the third-best player in the tournament behind the two players in the Flight 1 final.”

Mezo also led Laredo to the win at Flight 1 doubles.

TJC freshman Sureena Weir, the No. 2 seed in Flight 4, fell to Hillsborough top seed Eva Sambrano, 6-2, 6-3.

“The big difference there was the girl played last year in this tournament and got beat in the semifinals in Flight 5 by our girl,” Peterson said. “She’s a much better player this year, the experience paid off.

“Sureena was visibly nervous and she fought. She had such easy matches all week, she had no worthy opponent (until the final). I should have taken her out in the afternoon and pounded balls at her, hit bigger serves to her.”

TJC entered the tournament with the No. 1 ranking, based on its 19-2 dual match record.

“There has never been a year that we didn’t win a flight,” Peterson said. “There’s still no doubt that we’re still the best dual match team.”