ELLISVILLE – Jones College won its second consecutive NJCAA Men's Region 23 Championship here Saturday afternoon at the Bobcat Tennis Complex. 
 
Top-seeded Jones edged No. 2 seed Mississippi Gulf Coast 5-4 in the championship match, which lasted almost four hours. The Bobcats are now 19-5 on the season.
 
The Bobcats were down 4-3, but freshman Ridge Jones evened it up at 4-4 with a 6-4, 6-1 win over Jordan Mitchell in No. 5 singles.
 
Tom Garrett then clinched it with a 7-5, 7-6 (7-3) victory over Gonzalo Cotter in No. 2 singles in a match that lasted an hour and 59 minutes.
 
The 13th-ranked Bobcats jumped out to a 2-1 lead after doubles.
 
Matias Ruiz and Garrett beat Vicente Faria and Moritz Stroebel in No. 1 doubles, 8-5, and Diego Castellanos and Alex Holder edged Ryland Buford in No. 2 doubles, 9-8 (7-5). MGCCC took No. 3 doubles when Connor Hartfield and Mitchell defeated Ridge Jones and Reese Touchet, 8-6.
 
The 15th-rated Bulldogs took a 3-2 lead when Stroebel beat Castellanos in No. 3 singles, 6-1, 6-1, and Buford downed Holder in No. 4 singles, 6-1, 6-2. Ruiz evened it at 3-3 with a 6-2, 6-0 victory over Faria in No. 1 singles.
 
Nick Dulaney then beat Luke Westmoreland in No. 6 singles, 6-2, 6-2 to give MGCCC a 4-3 lead.
 
But Ridge Jones and Garrett pulled out victories to give head coach Brooks Buffington's team the championship for the third time in four years. Buffington was named region Coach of the Year.
 
In the consolation match, Itawamba defeated Northwest, 5-1.
 
Jones, MGCCC and ICC all qualify for the NJCAA Division I Tournament in Florence, S.C., May 12-16.
 
MACCC Men's Tennis Awards
 
The MACCC awards were announced during the region tournament's opening day on Thursday.
 
MACCC #1 Doubles Champions
Ege Atlas and Jake Bucek, Co-Lin (9-1)
 
MACCC #1 Doubles Runner Ups
Moritz Stroebel and Vicente Faria, MGCCC (8-2)
 
MACCC #1 Singles Champion
Matias Ruiz, Jones College (10-0)
 
MACCC #1 Singles Runner Ups
Gonzalo Cotter, MGCCC (7-2)
 
All-MACCC Team
(Voted on by the coaches and coaches could not vote for their own players). Player receiving most votes is the MACCC Player of the Year.
 
Player of the Year
Matias Ruiz, Jones College
 
All-MACCC Team
Ridge Jones, Jones College
Ege Atlas, Co-Lin
Vicente Faria, MGCCC
Simon Ojeda, Meridian
Joan Mateu Ramis Pascual, Itawamba
Daniel Espin, Meridian
Mansur Khajimuradov, Southwest
 
MACCC Coach of the Year
(Voted on by the coaches)
Brooks Buffington, Jones College
 
MACCC Team Champion
Jones College (10-0)
 
MACCC Team RunnerUp
MGCCC (9-1)