SC State's road to building tennis dynasty paved with trials, triumphs

ROSTER

ORANGEBURG, South Carolina -- When you’ve won 25 conference tennis titles – 12 men’s and 13 women’s – in a 17-year career, including 14 straight seasons with at least one title, it can be difficult for a coach to decide which of those championships he ranks highest.

Hardeep Judge, South Carolina State’s tennis coach since 2002, has no problem settling on his most challenging season, though. That would be the one that just concluded with this year’s Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference men’s crown.

It might also be his most satisfying.

“Because of the personal stories, the injuries and other losses – that’s why (this season) is special,” the 48-year-old Canadian native of Indian heritage said Thursday after a “Salute and Send-off” for his eight-man team, held at Orangeburg Country Club and attended by more than 100, including S.C. State president James E. Clark, city mayor Michael Butler, and a representative from U.S. Sen. Tim Scott’s office.

This weekend, the Bulldogs travel to Gainesville, Fla., to face No. 13 Florida in an NCAA Tournament first-round matchup on Saturday. The Gators will be heavily favored, but simply getting to the post-season capped an effort that Judge’s boss, first-year athletics director Stacy Danley, dubbed “phenomenal.”

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