PLANO, Tex. - A few weeks after the Iowa Central women recorded the best finish in program history, the Triton men's tennis team did the exact same, placing 10th here at the NJCAA Championships. 

Nico Zumba capped things off by winning the consolation championship at No. 4 singles on Friday, giving Iowa Central 18 team points. 

"We just kept battling and battling," Iowa Central head coach Jerry Thor said. "This men's team came here with the goal of following what the women's team accomplished and they did just that. I'm very proud of them."

Zumba reeled off three consecutive wins to claim third, including a 9-8 win with a 7-5 victory in the tiebreaker over Jacambrian Madlock of Itawamba. 

A strong opening day helped position the Tritons in the team standings, as the group went 7-2 in singles and doubles matches. Nicholas Espinoza reached the quarterfinals of the No. 3 singles bracket while the doubles teams of Espinoza and Juan Navarrete and Merlin Bolema and Theo Devals advanced to the second round. 

Juan Gomez and Zumba also reached the consolation semifinals during the week. 

"As a head coach, I could not be more proud of everyone involved with the Iowa Central tennis program," Thor said. "Despite being deal with plenty of adversity this year, they really came together and helped leave their mark on Triton athletics. 

"This has been an incredible season and one I will never forget."

Earlier this month, Iowa Central finished 10th overall at the women's championships in Arizona behind two consolation doubles titles and a fourth place individual finish by the group of Marketa Beladova, Juliana Vidal, Emma Slade, Rachel Slade and Sofia Andrade.

-By Dana Becker