NORFOLK, Va. – Norfolk State men's tennis held a brief 2-1 lead over Bethune-Cookman but could not keep the Wildcats (7-9) at bay in Thursday's 4-2 loss in the quarterfinals of the MEAC Tournament at the Folkes-Stevens Tennis Center on the campus of Old Dominion University.
 
The Spartans (5-9) rallied from an early 1-0 deficit after dropping the doubles point.
 
B-CU was left with no margin for error in doubles play after defaulting the third-seeded flight. Victor Bravo and Phillip Lynch defeated Agustin Carrizo and Flavian Fernandez, 6-1, on the first court before Jose Plazas and Victor Castro sealed the point with a 6-4 win over Vini Da Silva and Ignacio Guevel.
 
NSU quickly tied the score at 1-1 with a 6-0, 6-0 win at No. 6 singles by Ignacio Guevel. Carrizo then put the Spartans ahead with a 6-0, 6-3 sweep of Lynch on the third court.
 
However, that lead was short lived. Shortly thereafter, Bravo tied the score again with a 6-0, 7-5 win over Da Silva on the first court in a clash of All-MEAC first teamers.
 
Plazas pushed B-CU ahead, 3-2, by topping Fernandez – 7-5, 6-2 – on the fourth court. Castro then clinched the win with a 6-2, 3-6, 6-2 victory against Andres Alcaraz at No. 2 singles.
 
Dan Dumitrascu was on the verge of pulling out a three-set victory against first team all-conference honoree Juan Navarro when the match ended. After splitting the first two sets by identical 6-3 margins, Dumitrascu led Navarro 5-0 in the third set.
 
The MEAC Tournament continues with the men's semifinals at 12 p.m. on Friday. The men's championship match is set for 12 p.m. on Saturday.