No. 6 Barton men post sixth straight top-10 finish with eighth-place showing at NJCAA Championships #GoBarton

The No. 6-ranked Barton Community College men's tennis team closed out its 2025-26 season Thursday with an eighth-place finish at the NJCAA Division I Men's Tennis Championships held at the Collin College Tennis Facility in Plano, Texas, marking the program's sixth consecutive top-10 national finish.

The Cougars compiled 14 team points to finish eighth in the final standings, behind national champion Pratt Community College (35 points), runner-up Tyler Junior College (34.5), and third-place Eastern Florida State College (26.5). Fellow Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference members Cowley College and Seward County Community College placed fourth and fifth, respectively, as all four KJCCC programs finished among the nation's top eight.

Barton was led by No. 4 seeded and No. 37 ranked Raphael Ankrah, who advanced to the No. 2 singles quarterfinals before retiring in the third set against Tyler's top-seeded and sixth-ranked Willem De Waal. Ankrah also teamed with Charles Alipoe in No.1 doubles, where the eighth-ranked duo produced the tournament's biggest upset by knocking off the nation's top-ranked tandem from Tyler in the quarterfinals before advancing to the national semifinals.

Alipoe, ranked ninth nationally in No. 1 singles, opened the tournament with a straight-set victory over Collin College's 16th-ranked Luis Oliva before dropping a quarterfinal decision to the nation's top-ranked Daniel Mauricio Marincas of Tyler. Santiago Villarroya at No. 3 singles, Armando Sigauque at No. 4, and Esi Molefe at No. 5 each recorded opening-round victories before dropping quarterfinal matches to No. 2 seeds in their respective draws. Kristian Tesevic rebounded from his opening round defeat at No. 6 singles to reach the consolation semifinals before bowing out to fifth-seeded Santiago Martinez of Collin College.

In doubles competition, Molefe and Villarroya advanced to the consolation semifinals at No. 2 doubles, while Sigauque and Tesevic reached the consolation semifinals in the No. 3 doubles draw.

Over the four-day championship event, Barton combined to post a 7-12 overall record, including a 5-7 mark in singles and a 2-5 showing in doubles. Six of the Cougars' seven-singles losses came against seeded or nationally ranked opponents, including three setbacks to eventual national champions in No. 1, No. 2, and No. 5 singles. Four of Barton's five doubles losses also came against seeded or nationally ranked tandems.

The tournament also reflected head coach Lyle Stickney's impact in the coaching ranks, as former Barton players Jeret Johnson and Marcel Miasato guided their respective programs to top-four national finishes. Johnson led Pratt Community College to the program's first NJCAA national championship, while Miasato directed Cowley College to a fourth-place finish.

Singles
No. 1: Charles Alipoe (No. 9 ranked)
            Won over No. 16 ranked Luis Oliva (Collin College) 7-6, 7-6
            Quarterfinals: Lost to Top Seed/No. 1 ranked Daniel Mauricio Marincas (Tyler) 6-4, 6-3
No. 2: Raphael Ankrah (No. 4 seed, No. 37 ranked)
            Round of 16: Bye
            Quarterfinals: Won over No. 5 seed, No. 18 ranked Aki Harada (USC-Sumter) 6-4, 6-3
            Semifinals: Retired in 3rd set to Top Seed, No. 6 ranked Willem De Waal (Tyler) 6-4, 3-6, 0-2
No. 3: Santiago Villarroya
            Round of 16: Won over Jaime Gimenez (USC-Sumter) 7-6, 6-1
            Quarterfinals: Lost to No. 2 seed, No. 43 ranked Sam Dinneen (Pratt)
No. 4: Armando Sigauque
            Round of 16: Won over Kotten Tabbert (SW Illinois) 7-5, 6-0)
            Quarterfinals: Lost to 2nd seed, No. 41 ranked Ander Huelamo (Collin College) 2-6, 6-4, 4-6
No. 5: Esi Molefe
            Round of 16: Won over Wyatt Jurgensmeyer (SW Illinois) 6-2, 6-1
            Quarterfinals: Lost to 2nd seed, Tiann Clark Nelson (Pratt) 6-3, 6-1
No. 6: Kristian Tesevic
            Round of 16: Lost to Aaron Gutierrez (USC-Sumter) 7-6, 6-2
            Consolation Semifinals: Lost to No. 5 seed Santiago Martinez (Collin College) 8-2
Doubles:
No. 1: Charles Alipoe/Raphael Ankrah (No. 8 ranked)
            Round of 16: Won over No. 11 ranked Niko Nadali/Luis Oliva (Collin College) 7-6, 6-2
            Quarterfinals: Won over Top Seed, No. 1 ranked Willem De Waal/Daniel Mauricio Marincas (Tyler) 5-7, 6-4, 6-4
            Semifinals: Lost to 5th Seed, No. 22 ranked Fernando Martinez/Salva Mulet (Eastern Florida State College) 6-1, 6-4
No. 2: Santiago Villarroya/Esi Molefe
            Round of 16: Lost to No. 25 ranked Jaime Gimenez/Aki Harada (USC-Sumter) 4-6, 6-2, 6-4
            Consolation Semifinals: Lost to 5th Seed/No. 22 ranked Phillippe Dau/Ander Huelamo (Collin College) 9-8
No. 3: Armando Sigauque/Kristian Tesevic
            Round of 16: Lost to Jet Capasso/Hugo Sjostrand (USC-Sumter) 6-3, 1-6, 7-6
            Consolation Semifinals: Lost to 6th Seed Benjamin Asker/Julian Blainey (Weatherford) 8-1
Team Results:
1st Pratt (35pts)
2nd Tyler (34.5pts)
3rd Eastern Florida State (26.5pts)
4th Cowley (25pts)
5th Seward County (20pts)
6th Weatherford (18pts)
7th Collin (16.5pts)
8th Barton (14pts)
9th USC-Sumter (11pts)
10th SW Illinois (0pts)