McPHERSON, Kan. (MacBulldogs.com) – Following a pair of outstanding performances at ITA Regionals in Salina, Kan., the doubles team of Camila Sanchez and Taimi Nashiku, and the duo of Michael Beltran and Martin Millos are headed to compete in the ITA Cup in Rome, Ga. The tournament will be held between Oct. 12 and Oct. 15.
“We are excited for these doubles pairings and this trip to the ITA Cup in Georgia. This give both teams and automatic top 16 ranking in the nation,” head coach Keiran President said. “Overall, this looks like a promising year for Bulldog tennis with a young, hungry and talented women’s team and an experienced and hungry men’s team.”
Sanchez and Nashiku are coming off a strong performance in Salina, advancing to the finals of the doubles draw after knocking off the top seeded pairing from William Woods 9-8 in the semifinals. The pair fell in the finals to the No. two-seed 6-3, 6-4.
“This is the first time in three years since a Women’s team or individual player qualified for this tournament,” President said. “Both Camila and Taimi are Sophomores and have a bright future as a pairing together. We cannot wait to see how they match up against some of the top doubles teams in the nation.”
The young duo enters the national competition unseeded and will open the tournament with a matchup against Annemart Kleijn and Olivia Scattinni from LSU-Alexandria. With a win, the team could advance to take on the second overall seed in the draw.
On the men’s side, Beltran and Millos advanced to the ITA Cup for the second straight year as a pairing. The duo comes into the tournament following a trip to the finals of the ITA Regionals after knocking off teams from Friends, Texas Wesleyan (8-4), Bethel (8-1), and William Woods (8-6), before falling to the No. three seed from William Woods.
“Martin and Michael fell short in the finals of the ITA Regional Tournament this year after winning it last year. They had a very good 2022-23 season, where they finished 14th in the nation. They have seen the competition before and are excited to bring the heat this year round.”
Beltran and Millos will square off against Laurenz Flender and Perry Gregg from Holy Cross in their first match. With a win, the pair could advance to take on the top overall seed from Xavier University (La.).
Both first round matches are scheduled to begin at 2:30 p.m. ET on Thursday (Oct. 12).
