Two new national champions from the world of HBCU tennis have been named: the Alabama A&M women’s and Tennessee State University men’s tennis teams, which won the titles in their respective divisions.
According to The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA), both teams and 33 other HBCUs competed in the 23rd annual HBCU National Tennis Championships at the South Fulton Tennis Center in Georgia on Sept. 14–16. After scoring 84 points, Alabama A&M’s women’s team came in first place to win its very first championship. In the men’s division, Tennessee State University, which won last year’s title, repeated after tying with Hampton
University. Tie-breaking rules look at the head-to-head matches between the schools, and Tennessee edged Hampton by having three wins against two losses.Hampton University’s women’s team came in second with 73 points, and North Carolina Central University was behind them with 57 points.
The North Carolina Central men’s team also ranked third with 82 points.
On its website, the HBCU National Tennis Championship states that the tournament gives schools the
chance to compete amongst other HBCUs with the opportunity to be considered the best in the nation. The game is open to all HBCUs. Every year, over 15 collegiate institutions (over 30 men’s and women’s tennis programs) with up to 250 players show up to compete in both singles and doubles matches.Results for the tournament:
Women’s Team Standings
- Alabama A&M University – 84
- Hampton University – 73
- North Carolina Central University – 57
- Morgan State University – 55
- Tennessee State University – 55
- Alabama State University – 54
- Jackson State University – 46
- Florida A&M University – 44
- Shaw University – 32
- Delaware State University – 30
- Xavier University of Louisiana – 29
- Tuskegee University – 21
- Albany State University – 15
- Alcorn State University – 11
- Clark-Atlanta University – 10
- Spring Hill College – 8
- Benedict College – 8
- Southern University – 7
- Bethune-Cookman University – 2
- LeMoyne-Owen College – 0
Men’s Team Standings
- Tennessee State University – 87 (H2H vs. ASU: 3-2)
- Alabama State University – 87
- North Carolina Central University – 82
- Jackson State University – 57
- Hampton University – 39
- Morgan State University – 39
- Alabama A&M University – 83
- Spring Hill – 23
- Tuskegee University – 21
- Shaw University – 17
- Alcorn State University – 15
- Benedict College – 12
- Xavier University of Louisiana – 10
- Southern University – 6
- LeMoyne-Owen College – 0