Hibbert Wins Horizon League Fall Individual & Doubles ...
CLEVELAND — Tennessee State University's Taj Hibbert delivered an outstanding performance at the Horizon League Fall Individual Championship, securing the singles title after a hard-fought 7-6 (6), 6-4 victory over Lincoln Battle of Cleveland State. Hibbert then captured his second championship of the event, teaming with Rohan Loubser to claim the doubles title with an 8-2 win over Lucas Bitzer and Oliver Dao of Tennessee Tech.
SINGLES
Hibbert, seeded second, advanced after an opening round win defeating Murilo Burckhardt of Tennessee Tech, 6-1, 7-6 (0). His path to victory included an impressive quarterfinal win over Kamil Kozerski of IUPUI, 6-2, 6-2. In the semifinals, Hibbert bested teammate Jonasz Dziopak, 6-2, 6-2, setting up his championship clash with Battle.
Dziopak, seeded third, dispatched early-round opponents Matteo Ceradelli of Youngstown State, 6-4, 6-0, and Charlie Robins of Belmont, 5-7, 6-4, 6-3. Although his run ended in the semifinals against Hibbert, Dziopak's performance solidified his status as one of the top players in the Horizon League, following his victory in the HBCU Men's A Draw National Championship.
DOUBLESHibbert and Loubser cruised through their earlier matches, including an impressive 8-2 victory over second-seeded Nico Jamison and Devin Boyer of Cleveland State.
In the quarterfinals, Hibbert and Loubser narrowly defeated Alex Alvarez and Murilo Burckhardt of Tennessee Tech, 8-6. The duo advanced to the finals with an 8-3 win over Nate Day and Konner Gunwall of IUPUI, setting the stage for their decisive championship victory.
The other TSU duo to advance past the first round was Nicholas Adamec and Adler Germinal, who defeated Xavier Ecarma and Emilio Bravo of Northern Kentucky, 8-5, before falling to Day and Gunwall, 8-2.
