Barton’s Alipoe and Ankrah earn men’s tennis All-America honors #GoBarton
Duo leads program to sixth consecutive top-10 national finish in closing out program history
Charles Alipoe and Raphael Ankrah of the Barton Community College men's tennis team have earned Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) All-America honors following the release of the organization's final 2026 Division I rankings.
The duo helped the Cougars close out the 2025-26 season and program history 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. Barton also concluded the year ranked No. 8 nationally and No. 4 in the final ITA Region III team rankings.
Ankrah led the squad at the national tournament by making a run to the No. 2 singles semifinals, knocking off the No. 18 ranked player before forced to retire in the third set against the top-seeded and No. 6 ranked player.
Ankrah also teamed with Alipoe at No. 1 doubles, defeating the nation's No. 11 ranked tandem before producing one of the tournament's biggest upsets by knocking off the top-ranked duo in the quarterfinals. The pair's postseason run came to an end in the national semifinals.
Competing in the No. 1 singles flight, Alipoe defeated the nation's No. 16 ranked player before his tournament run concluded in the quarterfinals against the nation's No. 1 ranked competitor.
Alipoe finished the season ranked No. 9 nationally and No. 4 in Region III singles competition, while Ankrah closed the year at No. 16 nationally and No. 6 regionally.
Together, the duo earned ITA All-America recognition by finishing No. 4 in the final national doubles rankings while checking in at No. 3 in the highly competitive Region III standings.
The criteria for ITA All-America singles honors requires finishing among the top ten of the final ITA National Singles Rankings. Doubles All-America recognition is awarded to teams finishing among the top five of the final ITA National Doubles Rankings.
Final ITA Division I Rankings (National/Region III)
Team: No. 8 National/No. 4 Region III
Singles
No. 9/No. 4 - Charles Alipoe
No. 16/No. 6 - Raphael Ankrah
Doubles
No. 4/No. 3 Charles Alipoe and Raphael Ankrah
The complete list of Junior College Men's ITA All-America recipients and more information regarding ITA Awards and Rankings can be found at: https://www.wearecollegetennis.com/