When Bethany Wellerman signed with East Central Community College, she didn’t know if she really belonged, despite winning back to back state championships at Newton County Academy.
When she showed up for fall practices, she still didn’t know if she belonged.
On Saturday, Wellerman showed everyone that not only did she belong, she was a force to be reckoned with.
Wellerman won her first MACJC state championship on Saturday as she beat out Meridian’s Katherin Mitchell 6-3, 6-7, 6-3 to claim the women’s No. 5 singles championship. The tournament also served as the Region 23 Tournament.
Wellerman, who beat Mitchell twice this season and 6-0, 6-1 just a week ago, jumped out to a quick 4-0 lead in the first set and took the early lead with a 6-3 first-set win.
“I was a nervous wreck the whole match,” Wellerman said. “It was just point by point. This is a different level and I just felt like the stakes were a lot higher.”
Those nerves showed up in the second set as Mitchell fought back and jumped out to a 4-0 lead before Wellerman settled down. The former NCA standout actually had match point and went up 5-4 but Mitchell forced a second-set tiebreaker, winning 7-3 to force a deciding third set.
“I was thinking it was time to get it in gear,” Wellerman said after losing the second set. “ If I didn’t, there went all of my hard work. The second set, I think I was not calm at all and I think I settled down in the third set and tried to take it point by point and just chill out. This was big.”
With a robust cheering section, Wellerman righted the ship and jumped out to a 3-0 lead and took the second set 6-4 to claim East Central’s only championship of the day.
“She had a set point in the second set and didn’t get it and that just happens, even on the professional level,” East Central coach Jay Pacelli said. “You just keep on pushing forward and keep fighting and that’s what she did. She has added to her game this year. She has added some volleys and is more aggressive with her game. And she mixes it up that’s good for a tennis player.”
After going 11-1 in the regular season and undefeated against Mississippi competition, Pacelli was confident that Wellerman was poised for a big win.
“There hasn’t been a whole lot of (championships) at East Central and we plan on doing a whole lot more,” Pacelli said. “I had a feeling she was going to be tough in this tournament. She is the ultimate competitor out there and she just put everything out.
She just wore the other girl down. Katherin played a really good match but Bethany just wore her down and that was the difference.”
Wellerman said she never thought she would end up in this position when she first started practicing in the fall at East Central. But her first scrimmage showed Wellerman that she belonged on the college level.
“I didn’t think when I signed that I would be playing for a state championship,” Wellerman said. “In the fall scrimmages, I sure didn’t think that. It’s just a completely different level from what I am used to. We had our first scrimmage at Millsaps and I was the only one that won that day so I was like ‘maybe I can do this.’ After I got that victory, I thought I could do this and just kept thinking that in every match. It’s just an amazing feeling.”
Wellerman received a first-round bye and beat August Parker from Jones 6-7(8), 6-4, 6-1 in the semifinals.
