SAN ANTONIO, Texas -- Trinity finished off a sweep of the ITA Regional Singles and Doubles Championships on Sunday, as Paxton Deuel won the singles tournament, and the team of Eliot Guin and Brandon Thompson won doubles.
All of the finals consisted of Trinity players, including main-draw singles. Fifth-seeded Paxton Deuel beat Tiger teammate Charlie Curtis, the No. 8 seed, by a score of 6-1, 6-1. Unseeded Eliot Guin and Brandon Thompson bested Deuel and Clayton Niess 6-2, 6-2 in the doubles title match.
Trinity made a clean sweep of the singles and doubles crowns for the fourth consecutive year. The singles and doubles champions have earned a trip to the USTA/ITA National Small College Championships Oct. 10-13 at Fort Myers, Fla.
Deuel, a sophomore, transferred to Trinity from the University of Portland, an NCAA Division I institution. He beat the Tigers Greg Haugen, the No. 2 seed, 6-4, 6-3 in Sunday’s semifinals. Curtis was a 1-6, 6-2, 6-1 winner over Trinity’s Connor Dunn.
Aaron Skinner won the ITA National Small College Singles Championship in the fall of 2012, after capturing the region title. Skinner later advanced to the NCAA Singles semifinals, duplicating the feat accomplished by Max Frey in 2011. Skinner was eliminated in the quarterfinals of this year’s regional event by Dunn, who won 7-6, 6-1. In the 2012 regional, Skinner and Jordan Mayer emerged as the doubles champions, and qualified for the National Small College Championships.
Greg Marifian of Trinity went on to capture “B” Singles, with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over LeTourneau’s Josh Bailey. Roland Green and Iian Logan fell 8-5 in the “B” Doubles final to Jason Ligon and Frankie Sanchez of Hardin-Simmons.
The Tiger men are led by Head Coach Russell McMindes, in his fifth season at Trinity’s helm. He has guided the Tigers to four straight appearances in the NCAA Division III Tournament, and to the quarterfinals of three of those trips (including 2013).
