NORFOLK, Va. – With the start of the MEAC Tennis Tournament only 15 days away, the final stretch of the 2018 regular season is quickly approaching for Norfolk State men's and women's tennis. The two programs are set to host a combined seven matches in seven days, all against MEAC Northern Division competition.
The marathon begins on Thursday afternoon with a pair of dual matches against Hampton at 4 p.m. Morgan State then visits on Sunday at 3 p.m., followed by Coppin State on Monday at 11 a.m. While the season ends for the men's team on Monday, the women's team faces Maryland Eastern Shore next Wednesday at 2 p.m. in a makeup match.
Monday morning's match against CSU will also serve as senior day, where
Dajana Cvjetkovic and
Ana Popovic will be honored for their contributions to the women's tennis program.
Men's Tennis
The Spartans (6-4, 1-0) are only one outing deep into the four-match conference schedule. NSU opened MEAC play with a 4-0 road sweep of Howard on March 31 and most-recently fell 5-2 to Longwood on Sunday.
Andres Alcaraz was perfect against the Lancers, picking up wins in singles and doubles play, and earned his third-straight MEAC Player of the Week honor in the process. The sophomore is 7-2 in singles play this season and on a five-match winning streak.
Hampton is 1-9 on the season and lost 4-0 to Morgan State in its last match on March 31. The Pirates previously defeated Howard, 4-1, and are 1-1 in conference matches. Matt Foster-Estwick paces HU with four victories and is 1-1 in MEAC play.
NSU and Hampton matched up earlier this season in a non-conference outing on March 4. The Spartans emerged victorious, defeating HU 5-2. Alcaraz,
Vini Da Silva,
Dan Dumitrascu,
Agustin Carrizo and
Ignacio Guevel all earned singles wins in that match.
Reigning Northern Division champion Morgan State is in the driver's seat in the Northern Division with a 2-0 record in MEAC matches. The Bears are 9-4 overall and have conference wins over Hampton and Howard.
Sebastian Lopez and Nihit Rawal each have nine wins for MSU, and each are on a seven-match winning streak.
Coppin State entered the week 1-7 overall and 0-1 in MEAC play with an inter-city showdown with Morgan State looming on Wednesday night. The Eagles were picked to finish last in the Northern Division.
Women's Tennis
The Spartans split their first two Northern Division contests and sit at 2-6 overall. On Sunday, NSU lost at Longwood 4-0 to wrap up the non-conference portion of its schedule.
Cvjetkovic is the top performer for the Spartans, boasting a 6-2 overall record, including a 2-0 mark in MEAC play. The senior has received MEAC Player of the Week distinctions twice this season.
Hampton is the lone undefeated team in Northern Division action, sitting atop the standings at 3-0. The Lady Pirates traveled to Liberty on Sunday, taking a 7-0 loss. Yulia Kapitanova leads HU with a 6-3 record in singles action and is 2-0 in MEAC competition.
Morgan State currently stands second in the division at 2-1 and is 6-11 overall. On Sunday, the Lady Bears eked out a 4-3 victory over Howard. Danielle Thompson won in straight sets against Howard in the top-seeded singles flight and leads MSU with a 10-7 mark in singles action this season. Thompson is also undefeated in conference play, owning a 3-0 record.
Like the Spartans, Coppin State entered today at 1-1 in the Northern Division. CSU defeated MDES, 6-1, on March 3 before falling to Howard, 4-0, on April 5.
MDES, the Spartans' final regular-season opponent, is still searching for its first win of the season and currently stands 0-4 and 0-1 in MEAC play. Sarah Adewumi has the lone singles victory for the Lady Hawks, having defeated Coppin State's Tinashe Gwaze in three sets.
