Prairie View A&M tennis coach John Cochran saw flashes of greatness from his team during the competition of the SWAC Round-Up.

The Lady Panthers went 3-1 against conference opponents on Feb. 24-25, beating teams that they were supposed to by substantial margins and losing to a tough Jackson State team in a 4-3 decision.

“The women have to step up more collectively as a team,” Cochran said. “They did it to a degree in the Jackson State match, but they didn't finish at the end. But I think we're all excited about our potential as we begin to peak.”

It came down to singles points for the Lady Panthers against Jackson State on Jan. 24. Prairie View A&M won two of the three doubles matches to pick up the point. Then Brittany Harrell and team captain Lerato Ndlovu each picked up wins in singles competition. However, Jackson State would win the remaining four singles matches to get the narrow victory.

Christine Ngo Gwodog nearly clinched the victory for the her team as she fell to Kesica Jayapalan in a hard-fought 7-5, 6-4 defeat at the No. 4. Cochran said some of his players were moved to tears after such an emotional loss, but they retaliated with extreme prejudice on the final day of the tournament.

Prairie View A&M swept both Alabama A&M and Alabama State 7-0 on Saturday. Ndlovu and Brittany Harrell, two of the team's top players went undefeated in match play. Cochran said he looks for Ndlovu to take more of a leadership role as the season progresses, stating it will be critical in finishing on top in close matches.

“All year she has had a lot of three-set matches,” Cochran said. “They haven't all necessarily been wins, but she's always the last one to come off the court. She's the captain and she's always fighting until the very end. It's sort iconic of what the team embodies.”

The Lady Panthers next match isn't until March 17, when they will travel to Baton Rouge, La. to take on LSU.

Tennis Match Results
Prairie View A&M vs Mississippi Valley State
Feb 24, 2012 at Jackson, MS
(Jackson State Tennis Center)
Prairie View A&M 7, Mississippi Valley State 0
Singles competition
1. Brittany Harrell (PVAMW) def. Charity White (MVSUW) 8-1
2. Lerato Ndlovu (PVAMW) def. Tiffany Rose (MVSUW) 6-1, 6-1
3. Christin Ngo Gwodog (PVAMW) def. Jessica Baymon (MVSUW) 6-0, 6-1
4. Alejandra Barrera (PVAMW) def. Zoraya Kentch (MVSUW) 6-0, 6-0
5. Alix Thomas (PVAMW) def. Lu'Tryce Phillips (MVSUW) 6-1, 6-0
6. Alexandria Young (PVAMW) def. No player (MVSUW), by default

Doubles competition
1. Raven Lewis/Lerato Ndlovu (PVAMW) def. Charity White/Tiffany Rose (MVSUW) 8-0
2. Alejandra Barrera/Brittany Harrell (PVAMW) def. Jessica Baymon/Zoraya Kentch (MVSUW) 8-0
3. Alix Thomas/Christin Ngo Gwodog (PVAMW) def. Mia Nolan/Lu'Tryce Phillips (MVSUW), by default

Prairie View A&M vs Jackson State
Feb 24, 2012 at Jackson, MS
(Jackson State Tennis Center)
Jackson State 4, Prairie View A&M 3
Singles competition
1. Brittany Harrell (PVAMW) def. Asha Saravanamohan (JSUW) 6-1, 6-2
2. Karen Martinez (JSUW) def. Raven Lewis (PVAMW) 6-2, 6-2
3. Lerato Ndlovu (PVAMW) def. Harshini Reddy (JSUW) 6-4, 6-3
4. Kesica Jayapalan (JSUW) def. Christin Ngo Gwodog (PVAMW) 7-5, 6-4
5. Angela Codorelli (JSUW) def. Alejandra Barrera (PVAMW) 6-3, 6-1
6. Laura Rojas (JSUW) def. Alix Thomas (PVAMW) 6-2, 0-6, 6-3

Doubles competition
1. Harshini Reddy/Karen Martinez (JSUW) def. Raven Lewis/Lerato Ndlovu (PVAMW) 9-7
2. Alejandra Barrera/Brittany Harrell (PVAMW) def. Kesica Jayapalan/Angela Codorelli (JSUW) 9-8 (7-3)
3. Alix Thomas/Christin Ngo Gwodog (PVAMW) def. Asha Saravanamohan/Laura Rojas (JSUW) 8-3

Prairie View A&M vs Alabama State
Feb 25, 2012 at Jackson, MS
(Tennis South)
Prairie View A&M 7, Alabama State 0
Singles competition
1. Brittany Harrell (PVAMW) def. Nathalie Lorenco (ALSTW) 6-2, 6-0
2. Raven Lewis (PVAMW) def. Mechelle Barton (ALSTW) 6-0, 6-0
3. Lerato Ndlovu (PVAMW) def. Shameka Williams (ALSTW) 6-0, 6-0
4. Christin Ngo Gwodog (PVAMW) def. Renita Rhone (ALSTW) 6-1, 6-1
5. Alejandra Barrera (PVAMW) def. Katherine Lomax (ALSTW) 6-0, 6-0
6. Alix Thomas (PVAMW) def. No player (ALSTW), by default

Doubles competition
1. Raven Lewis/Lerato Ndlovu (PVAMW) def. Nathalie Lorenco/Mechelle Barton (ALSTW) 8-1
2. Alejandra Barrera/Brittany Harrell (PVAMW) def. Renita Rhone/Shameka Williams (ALSTW) 8-0
3. Alix Thomas/Christin Ngo Gwodog (PVAMW) def. No player/No player (ALSTW), by default


Prairie View A&M vs Alabama A&M
Feb 25, 2012 at Jackson, MS
(Jackson State Tennis Center)
Prairie View A&M 7, Alabama A&M 0
Singles competition
1. Brittany Harrell (PVAMW) def. Morgen Shaw (AAMUW) 6-3, 6-4
2. Raven Lewis (PVAMW) def. Denise Cherry (AAMUW) 6-1, 6-3
3. Lerato Ndlovu (PVAMW) def. Shannon Warner (AAMUW) 6-4, 6-1
4. Christin Ngo Gwodog (PVAMW) def. Jasmine Cherry (AAMUW) 3-6, 6-1, 6-2
5. Alejandra Barrera (PVAMW) def. Jessica Taylor (AAMUW) 3-6, 6-0, 6-4
6. Alix Thomas (PVAMW) def. Kara Kennemore (AAMUW) 7-6 (7-4), 6-3

Doubles competition
1. Raven Lewis/Lerato Ndlovu (PVAMW) def. Morgen Shaw/Shannon Warner (AAMUW) 8-3
2. Alejandra Barrera/Brittany Harrell (PVAMW) def. Jasmine Cherry/Jessica Taylor (AAMUW) 8-4
3. Alix Thomas/Christin Ngo Gwodog (PVAMW) def. Denise Cherry/Kara Kennemore (AAMUW) 8-0