This past weekend while competing in the Lamar Cardinal Classic, the Nicholls men’s tennis team had an impressive showing.
In some collegiate tennis tournaments that do not have very many schools competing, players are broken up into flights that are determined on skill level. Each flight usually features two athletes from each school.
Senior Dmitry Kozionov won the Fight 2 singles bracket with an undefeated record of 4-0. After winning his pool, Kozionov qualified for the finals, where he would ultimately win in three sets. Success is no stranger to Kozionov, who has been named All-Southland Conference three times.
“It was a great accomplishment for me to win this title because it was my first real taste of competition since last May,” Kozionov said. “It felt good to get back out there and compete because I haven’t felt that way since the conference tournament last year.”
In the Flight 1 bracket, freshmen Nico Mertens competed in the Flight 1 bracket, where he made it to the finals, where he would eventually lose in two sets. Mertens finished with a 3-1 record for the weekend.
Assistant Coach Dmitry Lebedev was very proud of Kozionov and Merten’s performance.
“Dmitry had a very good weekend, even after battling a wrist injury,” Lebedev said. “He came out fired up and he is continuing to get better every day. Nico is a great player with a great spirit and he has an unbelievable work ethic.”
Lebedev was also pleased with their doubles team’s results. In doubles action, juniors Jamie Eccleton and James Russell competed in the flight 1 division alongside fellow teammates Damian Despotovski and Kozionov. Each duo picked up a win before elimination in the semifinals.
Freshman Jeoffrey Noblecourt was paired with Manuel Estruega in the flight 2 doubles bracket. They won their first two matches, but fell short in the championship.
With successful results as these, Lebedev is proud of where the team is right now, but is focused on improving before the team’s first match Jan. 18.
“There is still a lot of work to be done, but we almost everything we could ask from our guys,” Lebedev said. “The incoming guys have come in and made a great impact on our team. The experienced players have influenced these new guys and made their transition easier.”
Moving forward with consideration for the upcoming season, Lebedev stressed the importance that doubles play had on the outcome of conference last year and he is sure the same will be the case this year too.
“I think the doubles will be key to winning the Southland this year because that is all it came down to last year,” Lebedev said. “We have got a lot of singles talent, so everyone will be fighting to make the top six.”