Tiger men’s tennis team picks up first win of season

Having had its previous three matches postponed due to rain, the Cowley College men’s tennis team returned to the court with an impressive 7-2 win over Seward County Saturday at the J.C. Louderback Tennis Courts in Ark City.

Cowley got wins from all three doubles teams and its top four singles players.

“This was a good win for us,” Cowley head coach Josh Cobble said. “We struggled a bit at the bottom, but everybody else played pretty well.”

Sophomores Richard Filkuka and Diego Motivar defeated Seward County’s Nirko Perknsich and Victor Mesquita 8-6 in No. 1 doubles. The duo then ripped through singles play as Filkuka defeated Perknsich 6-1, 6-1 at No. 1 singles, while Motivar (pictured) cruised past Roberto Gomez 6-1, 6-3 in No. 2 singles.

“I really look for our top guys to carry the load,” Cobble said.

Boomer Saia and Sean Cobble picked up a convincing 8-3 win over Seward County’s Luis Cabizuca and Ivan Michelli at No. 2 doubles, while the Tigers’ Ignacio Velez and Bruce Maytubby pulled out a hard fought 9-8 win over Charlie Salter and Michael Pettus in No. 3 doubles.

Velez dominated Mesquita 6-1, 6-0 in No. 3 singles play, and Cobble earned a 6-4, 6-2 win over Cabizuca at No. 4 singles.

Cowley is now 1-2 on the season. The Tigers will now prepare for the Seminole Trojan Festival, which will be held Friday and Saturday in Oklahoma City, Okla. On Friday, Cowley will play Collin County at noon and North Central Texas College at 4 p.m.
On Saturday, the Tigers will battle Arkansas Fort Smith at 9 a.m. and Seminole State at 1 p.m.

“All of the schools we will play our ranked in the top-10, so it will be a good challenge for us,” Cobble said. “This will let us know where we stand in the region and in the nation.”

Results:
DOUBLES

•No. 1 —Richard Filkuka/Diego Motivar (CC) defeated Nirko Perknsich/Victor Mesquita (SC) 8-6.
•No. 2 —Boomer Saia/Sean Cobble (CC) defeated Luis Cabizuca/Ivan Michelli (SC) 8-3.
•No. 3 — Ignacio Velez/Bruce Maytubby (CC) defeated Charlie Salter/Michael Pettus (SC) 9-8.

SINGLES

•No. 1 — Filkuka (CC) defeated Perknsich (SC) 6-1, 6-1.
•No. 2 — Motivar (CC) defeated Roberto Gomez (SC) 6-1, 6-3.
•No. 3 — Velez ((CC) defeated Mesquita (SC) 6-1, 6-0.
•No. 4 — Cobble (CC) defeated Cabizuca (SC) 6-4, 6-2.
•No. 5 —  Michelli (SC) defeated Maytubby (CC) 6-3, 6-2.
•No. 6 — Salters (SC) defeated Saia (CC) 6-1, 6-3.