NORFOLK, Va. – The Norfolk State men's tennis team was picked to finish second and the women's team was picked to finish fifth in the Southern Division in the MEAC preseason poll released Thursday morning by the league office. The voting was done by the conference's head coaches and sports information directors.
The men's team received 171 points, which included six first-place votes. Last season the Spartans finished with a 12-8 regular season record, including a 3-1 mark in conference play. NSU, Florida A&M and South Carolina State finished in a three-way tie for first place in the MEAC South after regular-season play was complete, marking the first time the Spartans have earned a share of a MEAC regular-season divisional title. Defending MEAC champion S.C. State was selected to finish first with 196 points, 12 of which were first-place votes. Florida A&M (148 points), Bethune-Cookman (128 points) and North Carolina Central (113 points) were selected to finish third, fourth and fifth, respectively.
The women's team totaled 160 points to finish ahead of N.C. A&T (120 points) and Savannah State (112 points). S.C. State, the reigning MEAC women's champion, was selected to capture the 2014 crown in the southern division and received 288 points, which included 21 first-place votes. The Lady Bulldogs were 6-0 in MEAC play and 17-4 overall last season. Rounding out the top-three was Bethune-Cookman (215 points and three first-place votes) and N.C. Central (208 points, including one first-place vote). Florida A&M (172 points) was picked fourth.
2014 MEAC Men's Tennis Preseason Predicted Order of Finish
(First place votes in parenthesis)
Northern Division
1. Morgan State (14)……………….....203 pts.
2. Hampton (1)………………………....154 pts.
3. Howard (3)…………………………...152 pts.
4. Coppin State………………………...138 pts.
5. Maryland Eastern Shore…………...109 pts.
Southern Division
1. South Carolina State (12)…………..196 pts.
2. Norfolk State (6)…………………...171 pts.
3. Florida A&M………………………....148 pts.
4. Bethune-Cookman…………………..128 pts.
5. North Carolina Central……………....113 pts.
2014 MEAC Women's Tennis Preseason Predicted Order of Finish
(First place votes in parenthesis)
Northern Division
1. Morgan State (19)………………......278 pts.
2. Howard (5)……………………….......235 pts.
3. Delaware State (1)……………….....205 pts.
4. Hampton……………………............179 pts.
5. Coppin State……………………......150 pts.
6. Maryland E. Shore………………....128 pts.
Southern Division
1. South Carolina State (21)………....288 pts.
2. Bethune-Cookman (3)…………......215 pts.
3. North Carolina Central (1)..…….....208 pts.
4. Florida A&M……………………......172 pts.
5. Norfolk State………………….......160 pts.
6. North Carolina A&T……………......120 pts.
7. Savannah State………………….....115 pts.
