NJCAA Division III Men's Tennis Championships -- Roadrunners Finish as National Runnerup in Peachtree City! - Rowan College South Jersey Gloucester

Posted: May 14, 2018

No. 1 singles Sebastian Gonzalez finished his season as national runner-up and an All-American for the second straight season. The complete list of RCGC results in the finals matches Sunday are as follows:

Flight 1 Singles

Sebastian Gonzalez (Cherry Hill East), National Runner-up, All-American

Flight 3 Singles

Jacob Harrison (Glassboro), third place

Flight 4 Singles

Paulo Claure (Delran), National Runner-up, All-American

Flight 5 Singles

Zach Carr (Williamstown), Rowan, National Runner-up, All-American

Flight 2 Doubles

Paulo Claure and Jacob Harrison, National Runner-ups, All-American

Flight 3 Doubles

Zach Carr, J.P. Ciliberto (Deptford), National Runner-ups, All-American

"Although we didn't finish our weekend off the way we desired as a team, we showed heart and determination throughout the courts today and the first 2 days of the tournament," said singles and doubles standout Paulo Claure. "Coming in first was the goal but coming in second just leaves us with hunger for next year and a proud and well-played season. "

Singles and doubles star Zach Carr, a Gloucester County champion last spring at Williamstown High, was especially proud of how well his teammates performed, including on Day One of the tournament last Friday when the Runners captured 8 of their 9 opening round matches.

"Overall this was a great tournament ," said Carr. "I feel Day One of the tournament was our best having eight out of nine flights advancing to the semi-finals. I would like to congratulate my teammates who did make it to the finals, and also Jake (Harrison) for winning the third singles back-draw. I am glad to be a part of this team and I am proud of all of the hard work everyone has put in."

Day Two Results -- National Championship Meet

RCGC First singles standout Sebastian Gonzalez, No. 4 Paulo Claure and No. 5 Zach Carr each won their semifinal matches at the NJCAA Men's Tennis D-III National Championships Saturday at Peachtree Tennis Center in Peachtree City, GA.

The wins by the trio helped the Roadrunners into a second place position after Day Two in the team standings. Oxford-Emory leads the team race with 27 points while RCGC is second with 21.5 points.

No. 2 singles Mike Colville and No. 6 J.P. Ciliberto lost their semifinal matches but will play consolation matches Sunday.

In addition the Roadrunners captured two of three doubles matches. Jacob Harrison and Claure won at No. 2 doubles while Carr and Ciliberto were winners at No. 3 doubles. First doubles Gonzalez and Colville dropped their semifinal and will play Sunday.

Here is the schedule of Singles and Doubles Main Draw and Consolation Draw Championship Matches:

ALL Doubles matches started at 8am Sunday Morning

McCarthy/Hua (Emory) vs Harrison/Claure (Rowan)

Hua/Sonawala (Emory) vs Carr/Ciliberto (Rowan)

ALL Singles matches will start at 10:30am Sunday Morning

Cabral (Emory) vs Gonzalez (Rowan)

Clark (IVCC) vs Harrison (Rowan)

Sun (Emory) vs Claure (Rowan)

Hua (Emory) vs Carr (Rowan)

Day One Results

Freshman standout Zach Carr said it best regarding his RCGC teammates' performance in quaterfinal play at Friday's 2018 NJCAA Divsion III National Tennis Championships.

Afterall, coach Brian Rowan's Roadrunners had just dominated play by winning 8 of 9 flights in singles and doubles play.

"Day one of nationals we crushed it, having 8 out of 9 flights advancing into the semi finals," commented Carr, who won at both No. 5 singles and No. 3 doubles and who was a Gloucester County champion for Williamstown High last season.

"Today has been an awesome experience, not only for me, but my teammates as well."

Thanks to all-around solid play in both singles and doubles matches, RCGC currently leads the team standings with 16 points. Nassau CC (14 points) and Oxford Emory (12) are close behind in the team standings.

Friday's success all began when the Roadrunners advanced in all three of their quarterfinal matches.

In first doubles action, sophomores Sebastian Gonzalez and Mike Colville advanced with wins to the semifinal round.

Jacob Harrison and Paulo Claure won in quarterfinal action and move to the the semifinal round today at second doubles.

In third doubles play, John Ciliberto and Zach Carr advanced to semifinal action today.

The success continued in singles competition as the Roadrunners captured five of six quarterfinal matches!

Gonzalez and Harrison advanced to semifinal play at Nos. 1 and 2 singles while Claure and Carr moved to the semifinal round at Nos. 4 and 5 play. Ciliberto also emerged a victor at No. 6 singles.

Semifinal matches will take place Saturday followed by championship and consolation matches.

Click here to follow the results on Facebook this weekend

Tournament Preview

The Roadrunners' Men's Tennis team wil begin their quest for a NJCAA Division III National championship this weekend at Peachtree City Tennis Center in Peachtree, GA.

The Roadrunners finished the regular season with a 10-3 overall record and 8-0 mark while capturing the Region XIX Championship last weekend at Mercer County Park.

An experienced team with several sophomores in the lineup, RCGC emerged with four singles champions -- Gonzalez at first singles, Mike Colville at second singles, Paulo Claure at fourth, and Zach Carr at fifth.

They also collected all three doubles titles, Gonzalez and Colville won first doubles, Claure and Jacob Harrison claimed the title at second doubles, and Carr and John Ciliberto rallied as victors at third doubles.

"Everyone contributed, and we could not be prouder of this group of young men," coach Brian Rowan said. "There were some challenging moments, but everyone was focused and everyone played a role in winning this title."

Seedings for the tournament took place earlier in the week. Matches begin Friday afternoon in 8-team flighted tournament. The Runners are currently ranked #4 in NJCAA Division III. In the 2017 national tournament, RCGC's Gonzalez finished as national runnerup at first singles while Colville captured a national championship at No. 6 singles.

RCGC has compiled a total of four NJCAA Division III National Championships and seven Region XIX titles in its proud history.

Watch for live results here and interviews with players and coaches throughout the weekend.

NJCAA DIVISION III

MEN'S TENNIS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP

May 11-13, 2018

Peachtree City Tennis Center

Peachtree City, Georgia